Rider Knights of the Throne Reboot
by Aiden Ravelle
Summary: A girl gets thrown into a massive war fighting a large Empire. An AU of an AU.
1. Chapter 1

Welcome! If you're here, and you haven't read Rider Knights of the Throne, I suggest you do so because it's one of the best fics we've written! We wanted to revisit the universe so we started it over and changed a bunch of details but it still follows Andy, Kiba, and the crew as they battle the Empire. Hope you enjoy!

A teen girl woke slowly, finding herself chained to a wall. She struggled against the chains, growling as she couldn't get out. She slumped against the wall, hanging there waiting for a chance for escape.

The door suddenly swung open, a man entering. He let out a curse as he saw the girl, then spoke into a small communicator. "You sent me the wrong way, idiot. Nothing here but a prisoner."

Andy looked at him for a moment before speaking, "Can you get me down from here?"

He raised an eyebrow. "What's in it for me?"

"I won't scream and alert the guards that you're in here."

"That might have convinced me, _if_ I hadn't already taken care of them all."

Andy cursed, "Then I guess there's nothing in it for you, other than you'd be a good person." She sighed, "I just want to go home."

He eyed her for a moment, then shrugged. "Haven't been a good person in a long time. But you're too young to be dragged into this war." He produced a laser cutter, freeing her in a few minutes. "Follow the hallway all the way down and you'll be out. Where you go from there isn't my concern." He walked out the door, turning in the opposite direction than he had directed, speaking into his comm. "Have you learned to read a map yet?"

Andy rubbed her wrists before working on heading out the way he told her. She moved slowly, keeping an eye out in case there were guards he'd missed until she finally got to the exit.

A few minutes later, there was the sound of laser fire. The man suddenly stumbled into her, knocking them both to the ground under the brightness of the twin suns.

Andy pushed herself up and looked at him, "You okay?"

He had his hand clamped to his side and he was breathing heavily. "I missed a guard." He scowled at the blood soaking his dark clothes. He handed her a keycard as he struggled not to pass out. "My ship is down that way." He pointed down an alley. "Take it and this, rendezvous with the Valkyrie. Tet will take you home." He pushed a message chip into her hand as his eyes began to slip closed.

Andy shook her head, holding her hands out to him. They started glowing as she began to heal his wound.

He watched her through narrowed heavy eyes. "What are you doing? You should get out of here."

She continued to work quietly until his wound was healed. "You should be alright now."

His eyes grew wide as he looked down. "You're one of those _witches_!" He scrambled away from her. "You're not taking **my **soul!"

She looked at him with surprise, "All I did was heal you. I don't want your soul..? What are you talking about?"

"All you Eshanans are soul stealers. You heal for a price. Well I ain't giving my soul. It may be black as a devil's heart, but it's mine, you hear! Mine!" He was trembling from a mixture of fear and anger, his eyes glinting in the sunlight.

"I don't know where you heard that, but it's not true." She held out the card and message chip to him. "I have to go find a way home, so just take your stuff and go meet your friends. I'll get out of your hair."

He eyed her a moment, then pushed her to the ground and fired a small weapon at something behind her. He grabbed the card and chip, stuffing them in a pocket. Then he grabbed her hand and started running toward the alley silently.

Andy followed along for a moment. When they got to the alley, she pulled away from him, "What the hell? First you're afraid I'm going to steal your soul, then you pull me along like you're helping me?"

"Would you rather I let you be shot in the back by that guard? You _should_ be thanking me. I could have left you chained up. Maybe I should have. Less headache for me." He approached a small two person fighter. "Good luck and good riddance. Maybe Tet will stop badgering me to help people after this." He opened the hatch and began to enter.

"Thanks then," she answered before turning away, "Good luck." She started to walk, keeping eyes out for more guards as she tried to figure out a plan to get off the planet.

"Gods damn it!" He was suddenly picking her up, his arms firmly gripping her waist as he swung her over his shoulder. He entered the fighter, dropping her into the copilot seat with a thump. He buckled the safety straps around her before sitting down and keying the liftoff sequence.

Andy looked at him in confusion, "Why are you taking me with you?"

"Because number one, my partner would never let me hear the end of it. Number two you shouldn't be here. Too dangerous. So I'll do my good deed for the century and take you home." He didn't look at her as he answered.

Andy sighed and looked out the window.

Shortly, a larger ship began to loom over them. Kiba touched a few buttons, then they were docking. Without a word, he unhooked the straps and opened the hatch. He walked out scowling.

"You didn't find it, I'm guessing?" A deep voice asked casually.

"And _who's_ fault is that?" Kiba gritted out in annoyance.

Andy looked out, unsure what she should be doing.

Another man was in the fighter bay, giving Kiba a long suffering look. He glanced toward Andy and raised an eyebrow. "You got a girl?"

Kiba growled. "She's Eshanan, dumbass. I'm just dropping her off because she's too damn young to be in the middle of this shit." He left the bay without a second look.

The other man gave her a dimpled smile. "Hi. I'm Tet."

"Hi, I'm Andy." She said quietly.

"You look like you need a meal. We're about," He consulted his chronowatch. "About seven hours from Eshana. Follow me and I'll scrounge you something."

Andy nodded slowly.

He led her to a medium sized kitchen. He pointed to a stool as he began rummaging through the fridge. "How did you end up on Chandra anyway? I didn't think you guys ever left your planet."

"I was kidnapped," she said quietly. "I don't know why exactly.."

He raised up, his eyes narrowing. "Why the hell would the Empire kidnap someone from a pacifist planet? You guys aren't even involved in the war." He brought over some ingredients and began to cook.

"What is this war about? I haven't heard anything about it.." She asked, "And I don't know why anyone would want me, other than maybe because I'm next in line to run Eshana?"

He was quiet for a few minutes, then answered. "The Empire came out of nowhere. Said they wanted diplomatic relations, then slaughtered our royal family. Who they didn't kill, they took to their research facilities to test weapons on. They took control of Chandra, then began conquering as many planets as they could. That was five years ago." His eyes looked haunted, staring at something only he could see.

Andy sighed, "Sounds terrible."

He blinked, then nodded and stirred the food. "We're part of a resistance movement to drive the Empire away. There's not many of us left. The Empire hit our home base a few months ago and killed a lot. More are missing, presumed to be in the Empire's hands. Kiba's not taking it well. Don't hold his attitude against him. He lashes out when he's hurting." He plated up the food and handed it to her. "I doubt it's royalty quality, but it's edible."

"Thank you," she gave him a small smile before starting to eat.

Kiba stalked in, pulling a alcohol ration from the fridge. He leaned against the appliance, his eyes locked on Andy as he downed half of the ration in one swallow.

Tet gave him an disapproving look. "You aren't supposed to be drinking and you know it." He looked at his watch. "Your next dose is in twenty."

Kiba waved off the statement. "Go mother hen someone else."

Tet's lips tightened and he made a plate for himself, then sat down next to Andy.

Andy ate in silence, wishing she could get home sooner.

Kiba finished the ration, tossing the container in the trash. He continued to stare at Andy until he gave a gasp and bent double.

Tet was by him in seconds. "I told you."

"Not that.. The _other_.." Kiba managed to get out between harsh groans.

"Dammit! Must be spreading. Can you walk?"

Kiba managed to straighten up with Tet's help.

The other man looked over at Andy "Would you help me get him to the infirmary?"

Andy nodded and went to Kiba's side, wrapping an arm around him. "Is there more I can do to help?"

Tet led them to the infirmary slowly. "Doubtful. The Empire.." He trailed off as Kiba gave him a death glare.

Once Kiba was on a bed, Tet administered a bright red liquid. Kiba began to relax, his eyes drooping as Tet drew Andy aside.

"The Empire did experiments on him. He escaped, but not without a goodbye gift. He was infected with a disease that spreads slowly. Prognosis is maybe a few more months, but not longer. The medicine relieves the pain and slows the progression, but it's working less and less. Soon he'll have to be constantly sedated."

"Can I try taking a look?"

"Be my guest." Tet moved away as Kiba stirred and weakly tried to rise.

Andy gently pushed him back before her hands started glowing. She tried a few different healing techniques to try to destroy the disease. She closed her eyes as she focused, working on slowly erasing the cells infected.

Kiba lay quiet, only semi conscious. His breathing was calming as she worked.

She finished destroying any of the infected cells she could sense, before moving away.

Tet came back, his face curious. "Were you able to slow it more?"

"I'm not sensing any more of the infection," she answered.

The man's eyes went wide. "You _cured_ him?"

Andy shrugged, "From what I can tell."

Tet stared at her. "I know why the Empire wants you.."

She raised an eyebrow at him.

"Kiba was given this disease because the Empire is trying to cure it. Both the Emperor and his son suffer from a variant. They want you to heal them.."

Andy nodded in understanding.

"You still want to go home? They may show up looking for you again."

Andy sighed, "It's not like I have anywhere else to go. But I don't want them to hurt anyone if they do come back.."

"You could join us..?"

"I don't want to intrude or be a bother," she answered quietly.

"You could be a real help here in the infirmary." Tet watched Kiba sleep. "If you can heal _him_, then what can you do to battle injuries? But I won't force you. I know what it's like to be away from home."

"I think for now I should go home. I'm supposed to eventually run Eshana.. And if there's a war, my mom should hear about it just in case. Plus, I'm sure she and my brother are worried."

Tet nodded. "Alright. Although I'm pretty sure your leaders know about the war. Your planet is supposed to be neutral territory."

"If they knew about it, why wouldn't they have told me?" She sighed again before adding, "Thank you guys for taking me home."

"No problem. Let me show you to a room so you can rest until we get there." Tet offered.

She nodded, "Alright. Thanks."

He led her out of the infirmary and down a hallway to a small room. He opened it and showed her in. "We'll be at your home in four hours. I'll comm you." He left quietly.

Andy sat down, staring at the wall as she tried to process that a war was going on and her people had no clue. She wanted to keep them safe and keep the planet neutral, but she also wanted to help fight against the Empire.

Four hours later, the comm in her room chimed. "We've arrived."

Andy left the room and slowly went down the hall.

Tet and a dark haired man looked up. "You ready? Takashi will take you down."

The other man rolled his eyes. "Call me Tak."

"Nice to meet you."

"Let's get you home." Tak took her to the bay, entering a fighter and waiting for her before taking off.

Ten minutes later, they were landing in the village square. Tak gave her a wave as she exited, then lifted off and disappeared into the sky.

Andy headed toward her house, running there when she got close. She hugged her brother when she saw him, happy she was home.


	2. Chapter 2

Andy lay on the cold floor of a cell, bruises littering her skin. She was barely conscious when she was pulled out of the cell.

"We have someone else for you to heal," a man pushed her down the hall. She entered the room she was led to, keeping her eyes on the floor.

"By the gods..Andy, is that you?" Tet's voice was weak. He lay on one of the surgical tables, multiple blood stained bandages wrapped around his torso.

Andy looked up, a hint of surprise on her face. She moved to his side and started healing him, afraid she'd get in trouble if she talked.

"You shouldn't do it. They only want to make sure I won't die under interrogation. You should run while you have the chance. Leave me." Tet coughed, a wet sound that made her worried.

Andy looked up at the guard before working to heal Tet. She whispered, "I've tried to escape. I never get far."

"I'll cause a diversion. It'll get you past the gate hopefully."

She shook her head, "They have something from my planet. I need to get it back before I can leave.."

The guard yelled at her to be quiet. She continued to heal Tet, once again keeping her eyes low.

"I'll still divert them. Give you a chance." Tet whispered, his voice growing stronger.

"Just worry about yourself. They'll likely transfer you to a different room for interrogation, you might be able to escape then."

"I won't escape without you. I swear it." Tet looked at her solemnly.

"If I can get to the item.. I might be able to get us both out of here," she finished healing him. "How do you feel?"

"Almost like a new man." He watched the guard, then sat up slowly. He waited until Andy had moved away, then sprang at the guard. As they fought, he yelled "Go! I'll be right behind you!"

Andy ran into the hall, glancing into rooms looking for the item. Finally, she spotted it. She entered the room, grabbing it from the table before turning back. She noticed a group of guards had swarmed the door.

She put the item around her waist, pressing a few buttons before armor surrounded her. She grabbed the gun on her hip and started firing. She knew she was a terrible shot but she tried her best and took a few of them out.

The rest went down in a hail of bullets. As they fell, Tet was revealed with a machine gun. He was leaning on the wall, his face bruised. "Andy! Let's go!"

She nodded and exited the room. They started down the hall and she spotted a door. Soon, though, she heard more guards coming from behind. She turned to shoot but was soon attempting to dodge shots being taken at them. She noticed one heading for Tet, so she pushed him out of the way, further toward the door. Her armor soon dissolved as more shots hit it. She stumbled, still trying to push Tet to the door.

Tet turned, emptying the gun he held. Several guards fell as the others retreated. He dropped the weapon and grabbed Andy's arm. He pulled out a beacon and activated it, before releasing and pushing her into a transport beam.

Andy looked around in confusion, trying to ignore the pain she was feeling.

Kiba looked at her in shock. "Where's Tet? What the hell are you doing here?"

"He was right behind me.." she said slowly. "There was a raid on Eshana.."

"Shit!" Kiba began touching buttons. "Dammit, they've recaptured him. We've lost him."

"I've tried to escape enough times, I know my way around. With you guys, we might be able to take the guards.."

"Are you insane? He wanted you safe, that's why he activated the beacon. You want to make his sacrifice for nothing?" Kiba glared at her.

"We can't just leave him." She swayed slightly.

"How do you expect to do anything when you can't even stand up?" Kiba said in exasperation. "Tak, take her to the infirmary."

Tak gently took her arm. "Come on, warrior princess."

Andy was quickly losing the energy to fight, so she followed along without argument.

"Kiba won't abandon Tet. He's his only living family. Just rest." Tak helped her lay down, cleaning her wounds gently.

Andy nodded sleepily before her eyes closed.

Frantic voices brought her awake.

"His blood pressure is dropping!"

"Dammit, Tet! Don't you die on me! Get that bleeding stopped!"

Andy opened her eyes and sat up, looking over. She quietly pushed herself up and went over to Tet, closing her eyes and focusing on healing him.

Kiba and Tak watched in awe as Tet's injuries began closing.

Andy kept working for a while before stepping away. She opened her eyes before stumbling back to the bed.

Kiba went to her side. "Thank you."

She nodded, "Not a problem."

"You should rest."

She glanced over at Tet again before giving Kiba a small smile. She then settled into the pillow and closed her eyes.

The next time she woke, she slowly opened her eyes and stretched out. She was still sore but not as bad as she had been. She sat up and looked around the room.

Tet lay sleeping next to her, a teenage boy hooked up to machines across from her. The infirmary was quiet, no one currently in sight.

She looked at the boy in confusion before closing her eyes and scanning him over.

Severe organ and brain damage was revealed, results of brutal physical and drug interrogation.

"He was strong, but not strong enough." Tak had entered quietly, moving to the boy's side and brushing a hand through his hair. "I wonder if it would be better to let him go? It's just.. I finally found him.."

"Who is he?" She asked quietly.

"My son. Ryusei is his name. He was taken in a raid several years ago."

Andy nodded before raising her hands and beginning to heal him. She hadn't had a lot of practice healing brain damage, but she'd read enough about it that she felt confident enough to try. She kept her eyes closed for nearly an hour, silently doing her job as a healer. She finally opened her eyes and watched him.

Tak stared as the boy blinked his eyes open and looked around. He quickly disconnected the machines as the boy began to fight, thrashing and pulling at the breathing tube. "Ryusei?"

The boy stilled, his eyes wide. "Dad..? Is this a dream?"

Tak blinked back tears as he shook his head. "No. I found you just like I said I would."

The two embraced, Tak mouthing 'thank you' at Andy.

Andy smiled before moving back to sit on the bed she'd been in.

After a few minutes, Tak went to her. "He's sleeping now. I'm in awe of you. First Tet, then Ryusei. Is it true you cured Kiba?"

"I think I did," she gave him a small smile.

"Wow." Tak shook his head in amazement. "Kiba set course for Eshana."

Andy nodded slowly.

"How _did_ you end up in a prison camp?"

"There was a raid on Eshana. I tried to fight back, but they overpowered me.. I'm not really a good fighter to begin with, though. They've been using me to heal troops."

Tak scowled. "Maybe you should stay here? It doesn't look like Eshana is the safest place for you."

Andy sighed, "Will you guys teach me to fight?"

"I'm sure Tet would be happy to, once he's back on his feet." Tak looked over as Kiba entered. "I think we have a healer."

Kiba's face darkened. "She's _supposed _to be going home. _Again_."

"If you don't want me here, I'll go," she said quietly. "I don't want to be a bother."

He sighed. "I don't want your leaders to accuse me of dragging you into the war." He grimaced and sat down gently as Tak clucked his tongue.

"I told you to use the crutches. Putting weight on those stitches is dangerous."

Kiba gave him a warning look. "I get mother henned enough from my brother. Don't need you too." He switched his attention back to Andy. "If you stay, am I going to have irate people yelling at me?"

She shook her head, "My mom is our planet's leader. So until she retires, I'm free to do what I want. My brother can keep me updated on what's going on in case there's anything major."

"Fine." He winced as Tak stabbed him with a needle. "You.." His eyes rolled back and he slumped into the other man's arms.

"Sorry." Tak gently laid Kiba on a bed. "He's being stubborn and I don't want to have to restitch his leg while keeping him from bleeding out again. Welcome to the Valkyrie."

Andy nodded before moving toward Kiba. She healed his leg quickly. "Thank you guys for letting me stay."

"Not a problem. The more, the merrier." Tak looked at her. "You need to rest more. You want to stay here or go to your room?"

"A room might be nice."

"Come on then." He led her to a similar room as before. "Enjoy."

She closed the door behind her before laying down. She slept for a while, then got up and headed to find the kitchen.

She finally found it and looked through the fridge before starting to cook.

Several teens entered, watching her warily.

One of them broke the silence. "Who are you?"

"You can call me Andy. I'm a healer."

They exchanged looks, then sat down. The one who had spoken pointed around the group. "Yamae, Kai, Terui, Shiro, Jack, Zal. I'm Ryon."

"Nice to meet you. You guys hungry? I'll make a larger batch?"

The boys looked at each and shrugged. "Sure."

"If you're a healer, why are you cooking?" The blond introduced as Zal asked. "Shouldn't you be in the infirmary?"

"Well, I need to eat sometime, don't I?"

"There are rations." Ryon shifted in his chair.

Andy shrugged, "I'm used to cooking with my mom. And wouldn't you rather eat real food instead of rations?"

They chorused "Yes" then laughed.

The door opened and the group quieted, watching as Kiba grabbed several alcohol rations. He moved to a back table, his eyes dark.

"Uh oh. This means trouble." Ryon's expression grew worried as the other boys exchanged glances.

Andy finished cooking and bowled up the food, passing it out to the boys. When she was done with them, she took one and slid it in front of Kiba silently before getting her own and sitting down near Ryon.

Kiba ignored the food, drinking the alcohol slowly. He dropped his eyes as Andy looked over.

"He does this after every camp raid. He never finds what he's looking for, so he drinks until he has to be carried back to his room." Ryon informed her quietly.

Andy nodded but didn't say anything.

The boys left their plates in the sink when they were finished, filing out silently.

Kiba stared at her through slightly glassy eyes. "You're good with them."

Andy shrugged before going to start the dishes, unsure what to say.

"Our last cook left because they harassed him. They like you." The words were still understandable, only slightly slurred.

Andy nodded and went over to him, "You going to eat or should I take your bowl?"

He gave her a look, then began eating. He handed the empty bowl to her. "You're a good cook."

"Thanks. I could do better if we had more ingredients."

He gave her a nod. "Make a list." He opened another ration bottle. "You regretting staying?"

"Not yet," she answered.

He gave her a small smile before taking a drink. "Why does everyone get to find their relatives except me?" His voice was soft and sad.

She finished the dishes and came to sit across from him, "I don't know. But maybe you'll still find them some day."

"Losing hope.." He stared into the bottle. "Remember the first planet we met on? I'm _supposed_ to be its King. Only the Empire decided I wasn't needed."

"That sounds rough. Maybe someday you'll be able to go and free the planet from the Empire."

"Five years. Five years of trying and failing. Five years of watching my people die. Five years of living with the fact that I survived but my family.." He took a drink, his eyes clouding. "Everyone believes my brothers are dead. I was so sure they weren't, but now.. Maybe I'm just a fool."

Andy looked at him sadly, "I'm sorry you had to go through all that. I can't imagine what you're feeling. But all you can do is hope and keep looking until you find concrete proof either way."

He stared at the table, tears beginning to streak his face. "I'm breaking..and I'm afraid no one will be able to put me back together."

"Want a hug?"

He nodded without raising his eyes.

Andy got up and moved to his side, wrapping her arms around him quietly.

He clung to her, shaking slightly. A few seconds in, he suddenly tensed, his body going rigid. His breathing sped up as the shaking got worse.

"Take deep breaths," she said quietly, her hands glowing as she scanned him over.

There seemed to be nothing wrong aside from elevated brain activity.

He pushed her away, clutching his head. "Aiko.. Why do I know you? Why do I have deja vu?"

Andy stared at him in confusion but the name Aiko felt familiar to her.

A few minutes later, he slumped into her arms unconscious.

Andy moved to lift him, carrying him to the infirmary and gently laying him in a bed.

Tet blinked his eyes open, growing surprised when he saw her. "I thought you'd be gone by now."

"I'm going to stay for a bit."

His eyes drifted to Kiba. "He hurt or drunk?"

"Right now, drunk."

"I guess nothing's changed on that front. Hope you know a good hangover cure."

"I'm sure I can come up with something," she gave him a small smile. "How are you feeling?"

He considered the question, then shrugged. "Tired. But I was sure I'd gotten myself killed, so waking up isn't a bad thing."

Andy nodded in response.

The Valkyrie suddenly was rocked by an explosion.

Tet sat up. "What the hell?"

Andy shrugged, "Are we under attack?"

Tet reached for his comm. "Tak? Report!"

Tak's voice was hurried. "Empire battleship shooting at us. They've breached shields, direct hit on deck 5."

Tet went white. "The boys?"

"No answer on comms." Tak's voice was grave. "We're trying evasives but they seem determined to board."

"What can I do to help?" Andy looked at Tet.

"We need to find the boys. They might need help." Tet slid off the bed and headed for the door.

Andy followed quickly, heading down the hall to find deck 5.

Heavy smoke met her, some flames visible. Tet activated fire suppression, then moved deeper. He entered a room that had at one time been a dining area but had been converted into a large bedroom.

Bodies lay sprawled, none moving. Tet knelt beside each, checking pulses. The look on his face grew grimmer as he continued. Finally he knelt beside Ryon. "They're all alive, barely."

Andy nodded, kneeling beside them, one by one, trying to heal them up. She felt herself growing weaker as she continued to work, but kept going, healing them as fast as she could. As she finished with one, she told Tet to take them to the infirmary before moving to the next. Finally, she was on the last of the boys, finishing healing him.

Tet supported her as she swayed. "You need to go back to the infirmary. Let us handle this."

"Are you sure?"

"There may be fighting. You should be ready to heal if needed." Tet stopped to listen as Tak spoke through the comm.

"We've managed to get loose. I set a course for Cassius. We'll be there in a few hours."

Andy nodded, heading down the hall toward the infirmary. She sat in a chair where she could keep an eye on everyone.

Kiba groaned and sat up. He blearily looked at her. "What happened?"

"You got drunk and passed out, and the ship was attacked but everyone is alive."

"Dammit." He rubbed his face. "Sorry about you seeing me like that."

She shook her head, "It's alright. Everyone needs times like that."

"Yeah well, everyone will tell you I end up like that too often for their liking." He looked up as Tet entered. "We safe?"

Tet nodded. "On our way for repairs. With luck we won't run into any more visitors."

Kiba nodded back. "Once my head clears, I'll be up to the bridge."

Tet looked over at Andy. "Everyone still good?"

"Yeah," she answered.

"Okay. I'll be on the bridge." Tet left the infirmary as Kiba winced.

"I need aspirin. Unless you know something better?"

Andy sighed and got him some medicine.

He swallowed the pills, then slipped off the bed and headed out.

Andy curled up in the chair and continued to keep an eye on the others.

Several hours later, Kiba returned. "Let's get you off ship to relax a little."

Andy raised an eyebrow at him but nodded.

He led her off ship to a beautiful planet, green with meadows. "Cassius. Home base of the resistance. Like it?"

"It's great," she smiled.

He grinned, sitting in the grass. He looked relaxed, unless you noticed the tenseness in his shoulders and the darting eyes.

"You okay?" She asked quietly before sitting next to him.

"Just wary. Learned that there isn't any real safe place anymore."

Andy nodded slowly before laying back and looking up at the sky. She took a deep breath, and relaxed into the grass.

"Kadoya! You have the balls to show your face?!" A giant of a man stalked toward them.

Kiba grimaced. "You better go back to the ship now. Let me deal with this."

Andy sat up and looked at the man before looking back at Kiba, "You sure you can deal with this on your own..?"

He nodded, his eyes never moving from the man who had stopped when he saw Andy. "We have some things to talk about. I'll be back." He stood and began approaching the man. "Tamsin, is there a problem?"

Tamsin growled. "You got my brother killed!" He swung a fist at Kiba's cheek.

Kiba ducked, then backed away. "I didn't get anyone killed. He joined the resistance of his own free will."

Tamsin's face went red with rage and he produced a knife. A second later, he embedded it in Kiba's chest.

Kiba stared dully at it for a moment, then fell backward into the grass as Tamsin walked away.

Andy rushed to his side, raising her hands to try to check him over.

"I always knew I was going to die young.. Wish I could have known you better." His voice was shaky as blood pooled around him. "You should go back to the ship.."

She shook her head before gently removing the knife. She worked on trying to heal him quickly, pushing her energy into him.

He gently shook his head. "You can't save me. You couldn't save me last time either, Aiko." His eyes filled with tears. "Are we forever cursed to replay this moment?"

Andy pushed her eyes shut as she saw visions of a man dying in front of her. A name came to her mind, "Akemi.."

"You remember?" His face brightened. "I'm glad. I love you.." His eyes dimmed.

More memories flashed back to her, a woman who looked like herself with a man who looked like Kiba. She tried to piece everything together as she continued to try to push energy into him. "Don't go.."

He tried to smile, but coughed blood instead. He reached for her hand as he began to panic. "Where are you? It's so dark.."

She took his hand, "I'm right here, don't worry." Tears filled her eyes.

"Will I see you again? Or is this the real end?" He struggled to breathe, his hand tightening.

"I'll follow you anywhere, Akemi." She said softly, more memories of their past life flooding to her. She tried to push more energy into him, feeling herself weaken but refusing to let Kiba die.

His eyes closed, his breathing slowing quickly. His grip was loosening.

"Don't die, please," Andy begged.

He didn't answer, his hand finally going limp in hers.

She let out a sob, still trying to push energy into him. She soon saw more visions, Aiko pulling energy from the earth as well as other people. She pushed the energy into someone and they soon started breathing again.

Andy took a deep breath and focused on the planet and its energy. She pulled in energy before channeling it into Kiba. She pushed in energy as fast as she could pull it from the planet, praying she could somehow bring him back.

He gave a loud gasp, sucking in air desperately. After a minute, he resumed normal breathing. He wasn't conscious, but the wound was gone.

Andy breathed quickly, thinking about what she just did. It wasn't a normal occurance to bring someone back to life, but the energy draining thing was new to her as well. She pieced together stories of her planet's history with what she had visions of, her whole mind racing as she tried to make sense of it all. She stared at Kiba, wondering what all of this would mean once he woke up.

At that moment, Tet and Tak appeared. Their faces grew panicked as they rushed over. "Is he alright? What the hell happened?"

She took a deep breath to calm herself, "He should be alright. He had been stabbed."

Tet's eyes narrowed. "Who?"

"Someone named.. Tamsin? I think?"

Tak's face darkened. "Sonofabitch! I knew he was going to cause trouble."

"He was blaming Kiba for his brother's death?" Andy said quietly. "Then he just pulled out a knife and stabbed him.." She kept her eyes on Kiba.

"His brother died on a recon mission with Kiba. Tamsin believes Kiba didn't do enough." Tet's voice was low and angry. "I'll have to report this. Tak, help get him into the infirmary." Tet headed into a nearby building and disappeared.

"Aiko! Don't go!" Kiba shouted restlessly.

"That again?" Tak sighed as he gently lifted him and headed for the Valkyrie.

Andy followed, "He's mentioned Aiko before?"

"Almost every night for the past five years." Tak entered the infirmary, laying the man down on a bed. "He never remembers why, just that someone named Aiko is ripped away from him. He started drinking so he wouldn't have the dreams, but it didn't work. They got worse after the big attack."

Andy nodded sadly before sighing, "Maybe he'll remember now.."

"In his present mental state? That might not be a good thing." Tak ran a hand through his hair. "He and Tet lost their older brothers. They're presumed in the Empire's hands, which is how he became King. He's obsessed with finding them. We're worried he's going to get himself killed."

Andy nodded slowly before looking at Kiba. "I hope he finds them eventually."

Tak gave her a sad nod, then left.

Kiba began to sob Aiko's name as he reached into the air.

Andy took his hand, "Shh, it's okay."

His eyes jerked open and he grabbed onto her. "Andy? What's wrong with me?"

She shook her head, "Nothing is wrong with you."

"I don't know who I am anymore.. The dreams are so real.. Aiko is so real.."

"You are Kiba. You _were _Akemi. The dreams are your memories of your past life," she said softly.

"Past life? Does that mean.. _You're_ Aiko?" He stared at her.

She gave him a nod before looking down.

He inhaled sharply. "I was dying..again. How am I here?"

"You died," she still looked down, not meeting his gaze. "But I saw memories of Aiko's and I did what it showed, and then you were alive again.."

"Wow.." He closed his eyes briefly. "I'm sorry. You don't even know me and then you find this out." He raised her chin. "I'm not going to pressure you. I don't want you to feel we have to be together or even be friends, alright?"

She nodded, "I might not know Kiba very well, but I know your soul. I'd like to get to know this you more, but I also understand if you don't want to get close." She closed her eyes for a moment, "I don't know what to believe anymore. With everything I've learned from my planet, Aiko wasn't a good person. But from the things I remember.. she doesn't seem bad at all.."

He shook his head. "Whatever they've told you, it's a lie. She was a beautiful person, not evil at all."

"Something made her change then.. She slaughtered a bunch of the villagers. Completely drained them of their energy.."

"They killed me..They made her watch as they tortured, then burned me to death.." His face was white as memories rushed through his head. He looked physically ill.

Andy was quiet, her own memories slowly reappearing. Eventually she asked, "But why did they want us apart?"

"They were afraid you would leave. I wasn't from Eshana.."

Andy nodded, grasping his hand tightly. "So it was their fault.. Aiko was driven mad.."

He sighed, his eyes sad. "And here we are again, from the same worlds. Will we never be allowed to be together happily? Did we do something to be cursed?"

Andy shook her head, "This time will be different. We'll make it different."

Tet came in, his steps slowing as he saw the scene. "Repairs have been completed and we're lifting off. Tamsin has been taken into custody." He paused, his eyes narrowing. "Everything alright?"

Andy looked at Kiba before nodding, "Yeah, everything is okay."

Tet frowned, but nodded. "Awaiting orders."

Kiba thought for a moment. "There's a research facility on Zurah. Let's hit it."

"How many research facilities do they have?" Andy asked quietly.

"Unknown at present. We have hit about thirty in the past five years. We find out about them from the intel we pick up." Tet took a deep breath before looking at Kiba. "If you're up to it, we'll do it. Setting course." He spun and left as Kiba sighed.

"He's pissed at me again. Thinks I'm chasing a pipe dream."

Andy looked at him, "Without proof either way, it makes sense to keep searching."

"We've been let down so many times. He's decided to accept our brothers are gone. I can't."

"If it was my brother, I'd keep searching until I knew for sure."

Kiba gave her a small smile, then kissed her. He quickly pulled back and muttered "Sorry." He dropped his eyes.

Andy pulled him close before kissing him hard.

His eyes went wide, but he kissed her back, his mouth greedy.

She deepened the kiss, never wanting to part from him. When they finally did pull away, she had a soft smile on her face.

He looked amazed, his eyes bright. "Wow… who taught you how to kiss?"

She chuckled and shook her head, "Maybe I'm just channeling Aiko." She then looked at him before giving a contented sigh, "I love you."

He gave her the first real smile she'd seen. "I love you too."

"So what does this make us?"

"Soulmates? Married without papers?" He chuckled softly. "What do you want to call it?" He sat up and raised an eyebrow.

"I don't care as long as we're together."

"The crew is going to be weirded out." He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her softly.

"Because we technically just met or because it shows you aren't always grumpy?" She laughed.

"Probably both. I don't care though." Kiba chuckled again. "I probably should go be captain like, even though I feel like I could sleep for a month."

"You should be rested if we're going to hit a facility. Why don't you sleep a bit longer? I'm sure they've got things handled."

He gave a yawn, then reluctantly nodded. He laid back down, his eyes closing quickly.

Andy curled up in the chair, watching him a while until she dozed off.

The Valkyrie began to rock from laser fire a short time later.

Kiba's eyes shot open and he exited the infirmary at a run.

Tet's voice came over the comm. "Pilots get to your fighters!"

Andy looked around, wondering what she should be doing. She started going through the infirmary supplies to see what they had if there were a lot of injuries.

Ten minutes later, the first of them arrived. A shorter blondish brunet was brought in semi conscious with second degree burns and lacerations. Tak introduced him as Kenji. "His fighter crashed in the bay."

Andy nodded before she started cleaning up his wounds. Her hands glowed as she pushed energy into him to work on closing them.

He gave her an thankful smile before he passed out.

She finished up healing him before discarding the used supplies. She then waited to see if she'd have more patients.

Tet rushed through the doors. "Andy, I need you to come to the surface with me."

Andy nodded and stuffed a few supplies in her pockets before following.

When they got down to the facility, Tet brought her to a small room. Kiba lay on a cot, a blood soaked bandage around one shoulder. A pair of men lay nearby, both severely beaten. And behind a force field was two men. They glared at her defiantly.

"Mind control. You can ignore them for now." Tet's voice was quiet, his eyes dejected as he watched the two mutter to each other.

Andy went to Kiba first, cleaning him up and healing his wound. She then moved to the men and worked on lessening the damage done to them. After a long while, they were mostly healed. She looked back at the two men behind the force field. She approached slowly, trying to get a read of their energy.

A column of black energy was twisted around the red and blue of the men, almost completely taking over. The men stared at her, their eyes cold.

Andy closed her eyes, unsure what the results would be, but attempting to drain the black energy away from them. Little by little, the black energy disappeared from them as she collected it.

They began to lose consciousness, their eyes becoming confused.

Tet watched her in silence, his lips tight.

She finished collecting the black energy, then tried to release it away from them. She was surprised when a beam of dark energy shot out at the wall.

Tet's eyes went wide. "What the hell is that?"

"Sorry.. I don't have much practice working with that much energy.." She sighed, "It's the dark energy that was in them."

"The mind control? You broke it?!" Tet had a look of cautious hope.

"I think so?" She looked back at the men.

Tet watched the unconscious duo. "They're back.. I can't believe we found them.."

"Your brothers?" Andy wondered.

He nodded before looking at Kiba. "He's going to be much easier to live with if you did break the control. I don't know how to thank you."

She shook her head, "Don't worry about it. Let's work on getting them to the infirmary."

Tet touched his comm. "Tak, we have casualties to move."

A few minutes later, Tak and a few others were moving the men to the infirmary.

Kiba stirred, his eyes opening and meeting Andy's. "I found them.."

She nodded, "I know. I'm happy for you."

"They don't remember me though.." His voice was sad. "Saka shot me.."

"They were under mind control. I _think _I freed them from it."

He sat up rapidly, then winced. "Really?"

"Well, I got all the dark energy out of them, so I'm hoping they'll be okay when they wake up."

He reached for her hand. "You're amazing."

"Just doing my job," she answered.

He chuckled, then quieted as one of the men groaned.

"My head wants to explode. Where am I?"

Andy approached and held her hands over him to try to help with his head. After a minute, she answered, "You're on the Valkyrie."

He cracked one eye, then saw Kiba. "You're alive.."

Kiba's face twisted, then he was hugging the man tightly. "I didn't give up. I kept looking, Saka. I'm so happy you're alive."

The man returned the embrace, his shoulders slightly shaking. "Little brother, it's good to see you."

Andy smiled as she watched them quietly.

Saka drew back and looked at Kiba. "How long?"

Kiba grew pensive. "Five years."

"Are you kidding? Those bastards." The other man scowled as he sat up. "Come here." He hugged Kiba tightly, then searched his face. "Our family?"

"Only Tet made it. He'll be here soon." Kiba's eyes shone as he gave Andy a joyous smile.

She returned the smile before scanning the two men over again.

Their energies shone bright, no sign of the dark.

Kiba looked at her. "Meet Tsukasa and Daiki. My older brothers. Saka is the real king."

"Nice to meet you. I'm Andy."

Both men bowed sloppily as Tet entered. His face went from worried to joyful as he ran toward both men. "I can't believe it! I was sure you guys were dead."

The duo hugged him. "Frankly we thought the same."

Andy watched them before giving Kiba another smile. "Seems like you've had a lot of reunions the last couple days."

He gave a self conscious chuckle. "I do believe you're right." He suddenly swayed. "Woah.. maybe too many?"

She put an arm around him to steady him. "Why don't you get more rest? You can spend more time with them once you're feeling better."

He gave her a small smile as he climbed onto a bed and closed his eyes.

Andy sat in the chair beside him, watching his chest rise and fall with his breathing.


	3. Chapter 3

Andy focused on the enemies, trying to improve her aim by shooting at them. The ones who got closer, she focused and drained the energy right out of them. She didn't sense the enemy approaching behind her, hitting her on the head and knocking her to the ground. She struggled as they grabbed her arm and started pulling her away.

"ANDY!" Kiba tried to fight his way to her, but a laser hit him and he fell and lay still.

Andy tried to get free, wanting to run to Kiba's side. She was soon hit once again, knocking her unconscious. She woke up chained in a cell, a man standing in front of her.

"Give us any information you can about what the resistance is planning," he ordered.

She shook her head quickly.

"If you don't comply, you'll suffer," he tried once again, "Tell me what you know."

"I don't know anything," she answered.

Soon, she was being used as a punching bag. She felt her ribs cracking as she was hit in the chest and she knew she wouldn't survive much longer if he kept hitting that hard.

The door opened. "Stop that at once. I want her released to me."

The man turned and looked at the speaker. His face paled, "P-prince?"

"Are you going to follow orders?"

He nodded quickly and went to undo the chains. Andy dropped to the floor, weakly trying to push herself up.

The Prince gently raised her to her feet and led her to a fighter. "Get in."

Andy was in too much pain to try to fight, so she obeyed.

When they were in the air, he put it on autopilot and retrieved a first aid kit. He gently began cleaning her injuries.

She looked at him in confusion, "Who are you?"

"Prince Alaric. I'm your father."

Andy stared at him in confusion, "My father's dead.."

"You were told that to keep you safe." He finished and put away the kit. "Your mother and I agreed that it would be too dangerous if you found the Empire."

"Wait.. You're with the Empire?"

"I'm the Emperor's son. I don't agree with the way it's being run, but I have to wait until I ascend to the throne to do anything." He sighed and returned to his chair, turning off the autopilot. "You know about the Empire now, so I'm going to introduce you to the Emperor."

Andy stayed quiet, trying to take in the information. She was the granddaughter of the Emperor? But she was with the resistance, right? She shook her head, praying that Kiba was alright and in better shape than she was.

The fighter began to land. Alaric turned to her. "I know you joined the resistance. Try not to do anything to put yourself at risk while you're here, okay?" He slipped her a comm. "When you go to bed, use this to contact your friends. Tell them to be waiting in two days to pick you up."

She nodded slowly, "You're not mad I joined the resistance?"

He shook his head and smiled. "If I wasn't here, I'd be a member. But that is closed to me, at least right now."

Andy gave him a small smile before trying to stand.

He helped her out of the fighter and into a massive throne room. A large bearded man in royal robes sat before her, his eyes narrowed.

"Emperor Tormin, may I present Andaka, my daughter." Alaric looked nervous, waiting for a reply.

"You did not tell me you created offspring." The voice was deep, the tone reigned in anger.

"I did not know. I only just discovered her. She was in one of our detention facilities and they ran blood tests. Apparently a tryst I had many years ago produced her."

Andy stayed quiet, watching them. She tried to look as with it as possible, even though her injuries were making it hard.

The Emperor finally nodded, looking her over. "The person who did this to her is to be executed immediately. Child, you will be Empress someday. Pay attention and learn all you can." He looked back at Alaric. "Show her to a room and let her rest."

"Thank you, sir," she slightly bowed.

He gave a slight smile, then dismissed them both.

Alaric helped her down a hallway to a room. He opened the door, then gave her a sad smile. "I hope that you can forgive your mother for lying to you."

"Are you Ave's father too?" She asked quietly.

"No."

She nodded, "Alright. Thank you for your kindness."

He sighed. "Contact your friends, then try to rest." He walked away down the hall.

Andy closed the door and went to better clean herself up. She found Empire clothing in the closet and found something to fit her. When she was done, she climbed onto the large bed and used the comm. "Valkyrie? Can you hear me?"

"By the gods… Andy, is that really you?" Tsukasa's voice answered in shock.

"Yeah.. Is Kiba okay?" she asked worriedly.

"He's alive. He's still in the infirmary. Where are you?"

"Look, it's a long story.. Just be ready to meet in two days?"

"Alright. Stay safe. Valkyrie out."

Andy slid the comm under her pillow and laid down. She stared up at the ceiling for hours, even though she felt exhausted, her mind wouldn't shut off. Finally, though, she did manage to get to sleep.

When she finally woke, she made sure she looked presentable and headed out into the hall. She wandered a while, glancing in different rooms. Finally, she spotted her father. She approached him and gave him a small smile before greeting, "Good morning."

He returned the smile. "Good morning. Breakfast?"

"That would be great."

He led her into a dining room, waiting until the servants had placed food and left to speak again. "You contacted your friends?"

She nodded in response.

"Good. Tonight I will send you out in a pod. Your friends can pick you up." He began to eat.

She nodded, "What are you going to tell the Emperor? Won't he be suspicious?"

"He is too busy trying to put down dissent to pay attention. Half the time I'm gone and he never notices." Alaric pondered for a moment. "I wonder if he'd notice if I shot him?"

Andy gave a small chuckle, "You could always try it.." She took a bite of food before asking, "What would the Empire be like if you were in charge?"

"_Not_ a power hungry domination machine. I'd try to work out the problems we have with the other planets. I'm a peace and love kind of guy honestly."

Andy grinned, "That sounds nice."

"Yeah." He stopped eating and looked at her. "How do you feel about rescuing some prisoners?"

Andy smiled, "That sounds fun."

"You will probably have to leave earlier though. But it might work out. Come on."

Andy nodded and took a final bite before standing.

He led her into an elevator, punching the basement level. When they got there, he inserted a key and turned it, dropping the car further down. When it stopped, he pulled two weapons from his belt. "The jailer is a sadist. Feel free to shoot to kill."

Andy nodded, "Okay."

He headed into the small jail. A single cell with a pair of men semi conscious and a tall heavyset man with a whip met her eyes.

The man with the whip snarled and began to approach. Alaric calmly shot him in the stomach and then opened the cell. He knelt beside the men, twins she could now see, and grimaced. "They may not be able to be moved."

"Let me see them," she said quietly before moving to kneel by them. Her hands glowed as she tried to start healing them. After a while, she moved away, "They should be alright now."

Alaric looked out the door, then went to her side. He slipped a keycard into her hand. "Take them and go. There's a passage out the door to the left which will take you to the launch bay. This will get you into the fighter that brought you here. Get back to your friends."

She nodded, "Thank you for everything." She tried to help the twins up.

They stared at her in confusion, but managed to get to their feet as shouts were heard outside.

"Go! Quickly!" Alaric pushed the three of them out the door and into the passage, then drew his weapon again and ran the other direction. There was the sound of shooting and a cry of pain, then silence.

Andy prayed her father wasn't the one hurt. She led them down the hall, finding the fighter. She waited until they were in to close the door, then she started the fighter and prepared for liftoff. Once in the air, she called the Valkyrie, "Send me your location. I'll make my way to you."

Tak didn't argue, just sent her the coordinates.

After setting autopilot, she turned to look at the twins, "What're your names? I'm Andy."

"I'm Rei. He's Yoshi. Tanaka. You're with the resistance?" One of the men asked anxiously.

"Yeah," she nodded. "It's kind of complicated now, but yeah. Once we meet up with my friends, you can hang with us for a while."

"Do you know a Kenji? He's kinda short, may be blond?"

"Yeah, he's with us."

Both men uttered a relieved 'thank the gods'.

An hour later, the Valkyrie appeared, pulling the fighter in with the tractor beam.

Andy climbed out, giving a sigh of relief that they were safe.

Tak and Tsukasa met them. Their eyes widened as the twins climbed out.

"You're alive…" Tsukasa embraced both of them, his eyes tearing up.

They hugged him back, then pulled back. "Kenji?"

Tak grinned. "I'll take you to his room." The three departed, leaving Tsukasa and Andy alone.

"Is Kiba still in the infirmary?"

His face darkened, then he nodded. After a minute, he noticed her outfit. "Why the hell are you dressed in Empire garb?"

Andy looked down, "It's really complicated.."

Tsukasa scowled. "Like nothing else is?" He shook his head and sighed. "I'll take you to see Kiba."

She nodded before admitting, "My father I thought was dead rescued me. Turns out he's part of the Empire.."

Tsukasa looked at her in shock. "Are you serious? Damn, you're full of surprises."

"Want to hear the worst part?"

"There's _more_?"

Andy nodded and looked down, "He also happens to be the Prince.."

Tsukasa groaned. "The universe hates me…"

She sighed and started down the hallway toward the infirmary.

He caught up with her, gently stopping her movement. "I have to warn you. He isn't in good shape. He took multiple laser shots. We were able to save his life, but he's been in a coma ever since."

Andy nodded, "I'll see what I can do." She went in, looking at him quietly.

He wore an oxygen mask, his chest and head swaddled in bandages. A heart monitor beeped overhead.

She stood beside him and closed her eyes. She focused on trying to gather energy from around her, finding some stars nearby to draw from. She pushed the energy into him and worked on healing him up. She stood there for a few hours before backing away.

Tet grabbed her as she swayed, seating her in a nearby chair. "Take it easy."

She nodded slowly, looking back at Kiba. She stretched slightly, wincing as it pulled on her injuries.

"Andy? Are you really here?" Kiba's eyes were focused on her, his voice laced with anxiety.

"Yeah, I'm here," she said softly.

He gave a long exhale, his eyes glistening. "I thought they'd killed you.."

"They almost did. Luckily I was saved," she said quietly. "I'm glad you're alive."

He sat up slowly, wincing slightly as he extended his arms.

She moved and wrapped her arms around him before kissing him gently.

He kissed her back just as gently, his arms clinging to her as if he were drowning. "Please tell me you're alright."

She sighed, "Physically, I'll be fine. I was pretty beat up but I'm doing better. Mentally, I'll probably be alright, just trying to wrap my head around some stuff."

He nodded slowly, then buried his face in her hair. "I'm tired but I don't want to miss you."

"Why don't we go to my room? Then you can sleep more but I'll be right there with you."

"Alright." He gave her an embarrassed smile. "I'm ridiculous, huh?"

She shook her head, "Not at all."

He looked down at himself. "Why do I look like a mummy?"

"You were hurt pretty badly and I wasn't here to heal you, so you were bandaged up a lot."

He nodded, then removed the oxygen mask from his neck. Then he slid off the bed and swayed.

She moved and put her arm around him to keep him upright before leading him out of the infirmary.

He held onto her arm as they walked, not trusting his balance. "The Empire didn't kill you?"

"It's complicated," she sighed, looking down at the Empire's symbol on the shirt she was wearing, "I was saved."

He gave her a soft smile. "I'm glad." His eyes started to close and he stumbled.

She held him up and got him to the bed. She wrapped a blanket around him before laying next to him, "When you wake up, I'll tell you more about it.."

He gave a small nod as he drifted off, his hand clutching hers.

With her free hand, she pulled out the comm she'd gotten from her dad and wondered if she'd hear from him again. She stared at it blankly for hours, her mind trying to figure out what she should do next.

The Valkyrie jolted hard, almost throwing her to the floor.

"Everyone be advised, we have several Empire fighters firing on us. This may get tight so hold on." Tsukasa's voice was calm, though she could hear the strain underneath.

The ship jolted again, then began moving evasively.

Andy tried to hold on and stay steady while keeping an eye on Kiba to make sure he stayed in a comfortable position.

He barely moved, his breathing steady.

A few minutes later, the Valkyrie slowed. An alarm began to sound in the hall, finally waking Kiba.

"What's going on?" He sat up and rubbed his eyes blearily.

"We were being fired at by Empire fighters. Not sure what exactly is happening though."

"Damn. We should probably see if anyone needs help." He began to climb out of the bed, then stopped as he saw a wisp of smoke creep under the door. "We may have a problem."

Andy looked before cursing. "You head to the bridge to see if they need help down there. I'll make sure no one is trapped by the fire."

He nodded, slipping out the door into the smoke filled hallway.

Andy went out and followed the smoke, finally coming to see flames. She tried to avoid them as she went further, searching for any sign of people.

A body, face down appeared. The smoke obscured the identity.

She moved closer, kneeling down and turning them over.

Tak lay unconscious, a gash on his temple bleeding sluggishly.

She gently lifted him, carrying him down toward the infirmary. She laid him on a bed, healed him for a few moments, before heading back to look for anyone else. The smoke grew thicker and she struggled to breathe, but she continued to look, wanting to make sure no one was left.

"Andy?" Her comm buzzed. "You need to check the engines!" Kiba's voice was hurried.

Andy acknowledged before heading down toward the engine room.

The flames were larger here, spilling out from the ajar door. She glimpsed two figures on the floor through the smoke.

She went and pulled them out of the room to get them to a bit safer location before looking at them.

Jack and Zal were motionless, smoke darkening their faces and burns visible on their hands and arms.

She carried them to the infirmary, coughing from the smoke inhalation. She then worked on healing the burns and their smoke inhalation, hooking up oxygen masks to get them fresh air.

The twins staggered in, Tsukasa in their arms. Rei shook his head at her as they laid him down. "Engines are down, as well as weapons. We're sitting ducks if those fighters return. Kiba is trying to get help, but our comm is damaged."

She nodded, "Tell me if they come back. I might be able to help." She pulled the small comm from her pocket, "Here's a comm, see if he can get it on the right signal." She turned to look Tsukasa over, raising her hands and beginning to heal any damage she could find.

"Andy, he's dead. We're lucky he's the only one." Yoshi looked sadly at her. "Daiki's injured, but he's helping Kiba right now."

Andy shook her head, focusing on finding energy around her. She located a couple stars and started draining them, pushing the energy into Tsukasa.

Both men gasped as Tsukasa inhaled sharply, then began coughing. They stared at her wordlessly.

She continued to try to heal any damage before sitting down and coughing.

Tsukasa lay unconscious as Rei quickly put an oxygen mask on Andy. "Deep breaths."

She nodded and finally calmed her breathing.

Kiba entered supporting an unconscious Daiki. He gently laid him down and coughed. "Fire suppression is back online. Should have the fires out soon."

Andy nodded, pulling the mask off herself and standing to check Daiki over.

A gash on his head and another on the right side under his ribcage oozed blood.

Andy worked on cleaning him up before healing him.

Kiba was pushed into a chair and a mask strapped on as he continued to cough. Yoshi cursed as the other man passed out, barely preventing him from falling. He was laid on a bed, the twins watching anxiously for any more surprises.

Andy moved to heal him as well before sitting back down. She quietly watched Kiba for a while.

Tet's voice came over the comm. "Thrusters back online. We're going to land on Cassius for repairs. It'll be a few hours though."

Andy sighed before checking everyone over again.

Ten minutes later, Tet spoke again. "Everyone get up here!"

Andy headed down the hall, wondering what was going on now.

Tet was scowling at the viewscreen.

The Emperor sat facing them. "To the Empire which I have built. There exists a thorn in our side, one that must be plucked. One which has caused us much sorrow lately. Our beloved son, Prince Alaric was shot by these agitators in the so called Resistance. He lies in the Palace, barely clinging to life. You, my subjects are encouraged to root out these agitators which threaten our peace loving Empire. Kill them where you find them. That is all."

The transmission faded as Yoshi swore violently.

Andy's breathing had quickened, worry for her father and what it meant if he died. She'd be next in line.. Would the Emperor come after her?

Tet grew worried as Andy began to shake. He reached out, steadying her with a look of alarm. "Andy? Are you okay?"

She shook her head, unable to speak.

He sat her down. "Do you want to go home? I know this must be terrifying."

She shook her head again, trying to calm her breathing, "It's not that.."

Tet sighed, sitting down beside her. "This is bad. Now we're going to have to dodge civilians as well as the Empire troops. We might need to go underground."

"We just need to take out the Emperor..." she said quietly. "Then I can fix everything..."

The three men stared at her.

"Are you insane?" Tet's eyes narrowed. "What do you mean you can fix everything?"

Andy looked down, "While I was gone I found out I'm in line to be Empress.."

The three men exploded.

"What?!"

"You're Alaric's daughter?!"

"You're going to have to hide. No way will the Emperor risk you ascending to the throne." Tet rose and started to pace. "We'll leave you and Kiba on Cassius."

Andy shook her head, "I don't want to hide.." She sighed, "Alaric just wants peace.. The only way we can get that is by taking out the Emperor."

Tet paused his pacing. "How in the _hell_ would we get close enough to him?"

Andy didn't meet his eyes, "Maybe I should get close to him.. Claim I went home for a bit but am coming back to check on my father and learn from him.."

"How do you propose to explain the fact that we escaped with you?" Rei watched her calmly.

"I don't know.."

Yoshi snapped his fingers. "Claim we kidnapped you. You escaped and heard about your father, so you are coming back to the Palace."

Andy nodded before looking down again, "This isn't going to end well, is it? What if I can't handle this. I don't know the first thing about running an empire.."

"Just get rid of the Emperor. Then you can free the planets he's taken over. Maybe your father will survive and you won't be in power long. The biggest obstacle will be your loverboy." Rei sighed.

She nodded again, "Alright.. I'll see what I can do about taking the Emperor out. I just wonder if the Empire will listen to me after I take over."

"Most of them are followers. They follow orders and nothing more. There may be a few die hard warhawks, but I doubt there will be too many." Tet grimaced as he looked behind Andy.

"It's too dangerous.. I won't let you." Kiba leaned in the doorway, stifling a cough.

"You should be in bed," she said softly.

"You can't go… he'll kill you." Kiba stared desperately at her. "I can't lose you again."

Andy looked at him, "What else can I do? We have to take him out somehow, I'm the only one who can get close enough.." She sighed, "I should have just drained him when I was there.."

"You can't beat yourself up. What's important is what we do now." Tet grabbed Kiba as his knees buckled. "You won't convince her otherwise, so save your strength."

Kiba scowled at all of them. "You guys are just fine with this? The Emperor will either brainwash her or kill her. But go ahead and throw her to the lions. Well, not me! I'll end him myself." He pushed Tet away and stumbled out of the doorway, heading for the launch bay.

Tet bit his tongue, sending a worried look at Andy.

Andy rushed into the hall, "Kiba, wait.."

He whirled on her. "Why? Why are you so determined to die? We just found each other again and now you want to try to kill the Emperor.. Do you wish to hurt me that much?"

Andy's eyes filled with tears, "I don't know what to do! All I want is somewhere peaceful for us to be together, and with the Empire that's almost impossible. I just found out my father isn't actually dead and is the Prince. And now he's hurt. The only way to bring peace is to take out the Emperor. Being his granddaughter, I could maybe get close to him.." She let out a sob, "I don't know, I'm not trying to hurt you, I'm just trying to make the universe safe so we can be happy.."

He deflated, slumping against the wall. "I don't want to lose you again. Why can't you just go into hiding?" He let out a heavy cough, squeezing his eyes shut at the pain in his chest.

Andy went to him and started healing him more. "If I was just us, I'd hide. But think about all the people that are out there dying because of the Empire.. If I can prevent deaths by killing the Emperor.."

"What if he kills you? Or worse, do what he did to my brothers? He could send you after us.. I can't handle the thought of that…" His voice shook as he struggled not to cry.

Andy wrapped her arms around him, "I don't know.. I just know I love you and want to help as many people as I can."

He sagged into her arms, crying into her hair.

She sighed, holding him closely. "What do I do?"

He shook his head. "Don't die..just don't die."

"I won't," she said quietly. "Just trust me, alright?"

He slowly nodded, his body going limp as he passed out.

Andy carried him to the infirmary before heading toward the launch bay. She stared at a fighter for a while, trying to decide if leaving was really the right option.

Tsukasa moved up beside her. "You think this is really the best idea?"

She sighed, "I don't know. I don't know what to do. I've barely processed anything that's been happening lately, but I know I can't just let the Emperor keep doing what he's doing."

"You have a target on your back now. Are you sure you wouldn't rather go home and lie low?"

Andy shrugged, "And let him keep killing people?"

"Let us fight."

"I don't know if I could handle hiding, knowing that I'm not doing the most I can."

"You're a healer though. You're not the type to fight." The dethroned king sighed.

"I know.. but that doesn't stop the fact that I was born as the Prince's daughter and I have to handle the things that come with that.. including taking out the current Emperor if I have to."

"It's not _all_ on your shoulders. Just because your parentage is who it is, it doesn't mean the entire universe is reliant on your actions." Tsukasa gave her a small smile.

Andy sighed, "I grew up knowing my planet would be affected by what I did, especially once I become leader.. The Empire is on a whole other scale.. and I just worry that I'm going to need to be responsible for that. If I ever do become Empress, it is on my shoulders.. What I do will affect everyone.."

"The Empire has been around for five years before you found out about it. It will no doubt be around in one form or another after you're gone. You can only do what you can right now. Don't try to change everything at once."

"So what do I do? Be a coward and just hide to stay safe?"

"No." He placed his hands on her shoulders with a smile. "Follow your conscience. If you feel you have to fight, if you have to become Empress, do it. If you feel more comfortable going home and not telling anyone what has happened, do that. Just stay true to yourself. Don't let me or Kiba or anyone else convince you otherwise."

Andy nodded. "Kiba and I just found each other again.. and I don't want to do anything to screw that up. But I think I have to go confront the Emperor."

Tsukasa nodded, then frowned. "You want to explain this whole found each other thing?"

"You know what reincarnation is?"

His eyes narrowed. "Are you serious?"

She nodded, "We were together in our past life." She looked down, "He was tortured and killed by my people. And now, we met by accident and our memories came back of who we were."

He grimaced. "That's why he's freaking. We might have a problem keeping him from following you."

"I know. If I can just get close enough, I should be able to easily drain him and get things over with quickly. Then, Kiba won't have anything to worry about."

"When are you leaving? I'll corral Kiba to keep him from chasing you."

"I better leave now before I lose my courage."

He kissed her cheek. "Good luck."

"Thanks," she gave him a small smile before heading to a fighter. She climbed in and started it up before flying off.

She arrived at the Palace, entering slowly and walking down the hallways looking for any sign of the Emperor or her father.

She saw a nurse exit a room, carrying a pile of used bandages.

She entered the room, looking around quickly.

Several machines beeped around a still figure in an infirmary bed.

Andy approached, raising her hands to scan him over.

Several laser injuries with serious organ damage met her eyes. Her father had both hands cuffed to the bed as a precaution. An IV drip of sedative kept him unconscious.

She started slowly healing him, trying to help with the organ damage.

"What are you doing?" The nurse from earlier had returned and was now indignant. "Get away from him!"

Andy stepped back, "He's my father, I'm just trying to help him."

"Princess?" The nurse bowed hurriedly. "I'm sorry." She began to back out of the room.

Andy looked back at her father and went back to trying to heal him. She scanned the energy nearby to pull from but was also keeping track if anyone were to enter the room.

His hand twitched as his eyes began to flutter open. "Andaka? Why?"

"It's a long story, but I came to help you," she gave him a small smile.

He blinked sleepily and returned the smile. "Stay safe."

"I'll try. You just rest some more," she said quietly before turning to leave the room.

Several guards stood in front of her. "The Emperor wishes your presence."

She nodded, "Alright."

They led her into the throne room, then backed away. The Emperor stared coldly at her. "Your father has become a traitor. He will not become Emperor. Are you the same?"

She shook her head, "I thought he was hurt by resistance members?"

He gave her a small laugh. "The official story fooled you as well?"

"So he's turned on the Empire?"

"He released two high profile resistance members and attacked my guards as a distraction so they could escape."

She nodded slowly as she read the energies in the room. She focused in on the Emperor's energy and began quickly draining him. He soon collapsed and she pretended to look shocked.

His eyes burned dimly. "You dare.." He finally lay still, his eyes staring into the distance.

She knelt beside him and checked to make sure there was no pulse. She looked around at the guards, "He's dead.."

They exchanged panicked looks.

She took a deep breath before ordering, "Take him to be disposed of." She stood and moved back toward the hallway to head back to the room her father was in.

They bowed. "As you command, Empress."

She closed her eyes a moment before continuing on. She stood by her father, undoing the restraints and healing more of his injuries. When she was done, she sat beside him.

He opened his eyes and examined her face. "What's happened? The Emperor..?"

"He's dead."

He began to push himself up on his elbows. "How? Who's in charge?"

"It's complicated. But the guards think I'm in charge now."

He frowned, then nodded. "Better you than him. Unless you're power mad and a despot…"

"My time will come, but you're next in line. The official report is you were hurt by resistance members. We could claim you were healed, he died of natural causes, and you become Emperor."

Alaric's eyes grew angry. "I have to tell the truth. The resistance will be blamed and innocents will die."

She nodded in response.

"Empress!" A guard ran in. "There's a transmission coming from your fighter."

She nodded, "Alright." She stood to follow.

Tsukasa's scarily calm voice was coming from her comm. "Andy, I don't know if you will receive this in time, but don't come back to Cassius. The Empire is attacking right now and I don't want you shot down. I hope to see you again, but if I don't, I hope you can change the Empire. Kiba says he loves you and he'll see you again in another life." The sounds of rapid explosions, then silence.

Andy looked alarmed for a moment before taking a deep breath. "Patch me through to all Empire forces near or on Cassius."

The guard saluted, then ran for a comm unit. When he returned, he handed it over. "Major Tynan is online."

"Major Tynan? I'm sure you don't know of me but I'm Princess Andaka, currently acting as Empress."

"Empress. You have a change of orders?"

"Halt all your attacks on Cassius. I want to stop everything until the Prince fully recovers and can take command."

"As you command, Empress. Any other orders?"

She looked thoughtful, "I want all Empire troops to return to their bases for further instruction. That is all."

"Understood, Empress." The channel went silent.

Andy looked at the guard, "Make sure all Empire troops get that last order, return to their bases for further instruction." She then tried comming the Valkyrie, "Valkyrie, can anyone hear me? Kiba? Tsukasa? Anyone?" She prayed they'd answer but she knew it was unlikely.

"Andy?" Ryon's voice was pained and shaky.

"I've called off the Empire troops. I'll be there as soon as I can to help you guys."

"Forget about us. We're done for. Just stay safe." He coughed, a sick wet sound. "It was nice.. While it lasted.." His voice trailed off.

"I'm not leaving you guys," she said with determination in her voice. She turned the comm off before heading back to her father's room.

"Andaka, is there a problem?"

"I need to go help my friends, but I'll come back as soon as I can." She said quickly. "And if it's easier, you can call me Andy."

He nodded. "Save them if possible. I will continue to make the changes you started."

She nodded before rushing back out of the room. She ran down to the fighter and climbed in, heading off toward the Valkyrie. She sat anxiously waiting, wishing the fighter could go faster. When she finally arrived, she noticed how bad the Valkyrie looked. She entered and started looking around.

The ship was wrecked, sparks shooting from destroyed computers and smoke from dying fires swirling around her. Bodies lay everywhere, all badly injured and none moving.

She moved everyone away from the sparks and flames before trying to heal them. She drew in energy from around her and worked on healing them up. It took hours and she felt exhausted when she was finally done. She then pulled in even more energy, forcing it into all of them as fast as she could. She continued, praying she could revive them.

Tsukasa's eyes fluttered open and slowly focused on her. "Am I dreaming?"

She shook her head, swaying as the exhaustion from controlling that much power swept over her.

"Kiba is in the engine room. It was hit first. I'll help bury him in a minute.." His eyes slid closed.

She sighed, "I don't think you really understand what's happening. Just stay and rest. I'll take care of Kiba." She went down the hall to the engine room, searching for her love.

He lay crumpled against a wall, tacky blood in a pool around him. Smoke darkened his face, but the fire hadn't reached him yet.

She gently wiped some of the smoke off with her sleeve before working to heal him as best she could. She focused on pushing energy into him, waiting for him to suck in air.

He lay unresponsive, cold and still under her hand.

Tears filled her eyes as she tried to gather more energy, pushing it in at a quicker pace. She felt herself growing weaker but continued on, not planning to give up on him.

Finally, his chest rose shakily as he inhaled. He remained unconscious. She pulled him further away from the fire before sitting next to him and leaning on the wall. She closed her eyes for a moment and tried to gather her strength.

"Anyone alive down here?!"

"Yeah," she answered before using the wall to push herself back to her feet.

Yamae and Kai made their way over anxiously. "Andy! You're here?"

"I came to save you guys," she gave them a small smile.

Yamae gave her a sad look. "I wish you could. Let's get you two out of here." He took her arm as Kai carefully lifted Kiba over his shoulder.

Andy paused, "I don't think you guys understand.. I've already revived half the crew.."

"And you look awful. You need to rest." Yamae helped her to the kitchen, the only room not wrecked. Most of the crew were laying on the floor, unconscious but alive.

"Bring anyone else who's dead to me. I'll try to help them," she sat down slowly.

The teens exchanged glances, then Ryon knelt beside her. "You have to rest."

"I can rest when everyone is safe.."

He sighed and pointed to a corner where sheets covered bodies. "Four of us didn't make it."

Andy nodded and pushed herself up. She went and knelt beside the bodies, uncovering them and starting to heal them. When she was done healing, she focused energy into them, hoping to revive them.

One by one, they sucked in air and resumed breathing.

Andy struggled to push herself to her feet, stumbling as she went back to the table.

"Rest, dammit. Kiba will kill me if you die on us." Ryon wrapped a blanket around her.

She nodded and laid her head on the table as she thought about her father in the Palace. She hoped the guards were listening to him. She soon drifted off into a dreamless sleep.


	4. Chapter 4

Andy woke, looking around the kitchen slowly, trying to remember everything that happened the day before. It all rushed back as she saw the men, some of them still unconscious on the floor.

The boys looked up from where they were cooking.

"Feeling better?" Yamae went to her side.

"A little," she nodded.

"Good to hear. Most of the crew are up and trying to salvage what we can. We were put on kitchen duty, in case anyone needed help." He surveyed the men, his eyes focusing on Kiba. "Everyone has been awake at least once, except for him."

Andy nodded slowly, "I can probably get a new ship for us if the Valkyrie is too damaged."

Everyone stared at her as Yamae raised an eyebrow. "Perks of being a Princess?"

She gave a small smile and nodded. "I'm going to have to stop back in there soon to make sure everything is going alright. I can ask about a ship then if needed."

Ryon sighed. "Is everyone really alright? I keep feeling like this is a dream.."

Andy nodded, "They should be alright. I know how you feel.. Yesterday I took out the Emperor and I wonder if things will really be better now. It feels like it was too easy.."

"You took out the Emperor?!" Tsukasa had come in and he stared in shock at her.

"I told you I was going to, didn't I?"

"Telling and doing are two different things. So who's in charge of the Empire?"

She gave a small chuckle, "It will be my father once we get things settled, but the guards were all calling me Empress."

"Okay..the Valkyrie is finished. We'll be here for the foreseeable future as all our ships are either damaged, destroyed or out on missions." Tsukasa sighed. "At least it will give everyone time to recover and decide if they are going to stay."

She nodded, "My father wants peace and to work with the resistance. Is there anything I should tell him or anyone who he should meet with to make things run smoothly?"

"He might want to speak to the Resistance leaders. I may be King of Chandra but I _don't_ run the resistance." Tsukasa looked at the teens. "You don't have to stay aboard if you don't want to. We can find all of you guys a place if you can't go home."

"You're always welcome on Eshana, too, if you want to visit or find a place there," Andy gave them a small smile.

The boys exchanged looks. "No one wants us. Why would Eshana?"

Andy shrugged, "We're nice people?"

Ryon gave her a small smile. "What they mean is our planet is gone. And the Resistance doesn't trust us because we're different. They're afraid of us."

Andy frowned, "We don't care if you're different."

The boys gave her cautious smiles before beginning to serve plates of food to the awakening men. Ryon gave her a shake of his head as he moved to Kiba. "Come on, wake up."

No response and Tsukasa shot Andy a worried look.

Andy got up and went to Kiba's side. She focused for a moment before pushing energy into him. She watched to see if he started to wake.

"Andy..Aiko..I will find you again. Just let me rest awhile.." His eyes were open, but unfocused. They began to close again as Ryon gasped. "Andy! His pulse is dropping!"

Andy pushed more energy into him, "Stay with me, Kiba. Please." She gathered as much energy as she could and forced it in, praying he'd stay alive.

He arched his back as the energy surged into him. For a minute he was still, then his eyes shot open and he stared at her. "Andy? How are you here?"

"We're together on the ship," she said quietly. "Everything is alright."

"The attack..I was sure we were all going to die. All I could think of was how I would never give up looking until I found you again." He grasped her hand tight.

"Quite a few of you did die," she whispered. "But I managed to save you guys."

There were hushed gasps from behind her.

Andy sighed, "I told you this time would be different. I'm not losing you that easily."

He chuckled softly. "You did, didn't you." He surged forward and kissed her hard.

She kissed him back before pulling away for a moment, "Hopefully now there won't be any more big battles and we can be together somewhere peaceful."

He gave her a smile. "Hopefully. What about the Empire?"

"The Emperor is gone," she answered. "Now my father and I can make sure things are better."

"You did it, didn't you? You killed him.." Kiba looked at her in amazement.

She nodded, "Do you want to come with me when I go back to check on things?"

"Is it safe?"

"It should be. If anyone comes after you, I'll kill them."

He grinned at her. "I can live with that."

Tsukasa cleared his throat. "I'll go see the Resistance heads. You can take a letter to your father." He left the ship as Kiba stood.

Kiba looked over where the teens were huddled and whispering to each other. "What's with them?"

Andy shrugged, "Tsukasa said they don't have to stay with the crew if they don't want to and I suggested they can stay on Eshana. Not sure what they're thinking though."

Kiba paled slightly. "Can we talk?"

She nodded.

"Not here." Kiba locked eyes on Ryon, who sighed and nodded.

"Okay." She moved and held a hand out for him.

He took it as Ryon neared them. "Let's go to the field."

"Alright." She looked at him, ready to follow.

The three walked off the ship silently. Kiba sat her down in the grass, then spoke. "I've been keeping a secret from almost everyone."

"Alright?" She raised an eyebrow.

Ryon took a deep breath, then his human form vanished. "This is my true form."

He shone brightly, soft red wings ruffling in the air. His face didn't change, although his hair was now streaked with black. A red stone hung from his neck.

"Ok," Andy smiled. "I like the wings."

Ryon blushed as Kiba chuckled and elbowed him. "Told you she wouldn't even blink."

Andy looked at Ryon, "So what are you exactly?"

"_We_ are Furies."

Kiba interrupted. "Only Tak knows they aren't human."

Andy nodded, "Alright. Then I won't say anything."

"We're debating on showing ourselves. Now that the war is over. Everyone is worried, since the Empire wiped us out because of fear." Ryon sighed.

"Until the Empire gets things worked out, I'd say keep it hidden. But Eshana is neutral anyway."

"Ryusei keeps telling us to reveal ourselves to the crew.."

"I'm sure the crew won't care," Andy admitted.

Ryon resumed human form and sat down. "I don't know.. We were isolated before the Empire came because everyone was afraid of us. Guess I just don't want that to happen again."

Andy nodded, "Well, I'm with you whatever you decide."

He gave her a soft smile as the rest of the teens walked up.

Yamae frowned. "You told her."

Ryusei grinned. "About time. I told you guys there was no danger on ship."

Kai elbowed him. "You are annoying, half breed." His wings were dark blue.

Andy raised an eyebrow, "So you're part Fury?"

Ryusei turned red. "Yeah..My mom was, my dad.. You get the picture. Dad saved the others but I was captured."

Andy nodded in response, giving him a small smile.

He looked around, then chided "Show her already, you idiots." He manifested a pair of gold wings and waved them at Andy. "I've got wings but not the whole look. It's rather underwhelming."

"I think the wings are the best part," Andy chuckled.

Terui raised an eyebrow, then a pair of jet black wings appeared. "Whose are cooler?"

Zal rolled his eyes. "This again?" A pair of sea green wings sprouted from his back. "I automatically win."

Shiro and Jack raised their eyebrows, a pair of purple, then white wings appearing.

Andy chuckled as she watched them. "They're all so pretty."

Yamae looked uncomfortable. "Lucky them.."

"Why? Do you have wings too?" Andy wondered aloud.

He slowly materialized and unfurled them. They were rainbow colored and he quickly made them disappear. "I'm a weirdo. No one else has or had wings like mine."

Andy grinned, "They're the prettiest though."

Yamae looked startled for a moment, then he turned red. "You're just being nice.."

"Seriously, I think the rainbow coloring is the best. I wish I had rainbow wings..Though any wings would be cool.." She trailed off with a small chuckle.

Ryon laughed. "We know who her favorite is now." He eyed her, then the others. "Should we finally do it?"

Yamae thought for a moment, then nodded. "Yeah. Especially if we decide to leave, they should have a memento."

Kiba had been silent. Now he spoke. "Memento?"

Ryon looked at Yamae and Terui. "Go get them." He then looked at Kiba. "Go get the crew."

Kiba was confused but left with the two boys.

Andy raised an eyebrow at the whole situation but sat quietly, waiting to see what would happen.

Five minutes later everyone was assembled.

Yamae and Terui placed a chest in front of Ryon. Then they stood beside him and they all dropped their human appearance.

"This is what we are. We wish to bestow gifts as thanks for aiding us for so long." Ryon opened the chest and brought out a glowing stone on a chain. He handed it to Andy as the boys passed out similar ones to the others. Tak brought out one of his own with a soft smile.

"These are proof you have been adopted into our people. They can change your appearance or be used as defensive weapons, whatever you wish. Use them well."

Andy stared at it in amazement before looking back up, "Thank you."

Ryon shook his head. "_Thank you_. You saved our lives."

Andy gave a small nod before looking back at the stone in her hand.

"You said you wanted wings.." Yamae teased.

Her eyes lit up, "Can it make me have wings?"

"Just think of what you want." Yamae brushed a hand through his blond hair as he grinned.

Andy thought about Yamae's rainbow wings and soon a pair appeared on her back. She gave him a wide grin.

Kiba moved to her side, a pair of silver wings appearing on him. "Amazing.. They feel so natural and real.."

Ryon smiled at him. "They _are_ real. The stones are tuned to your body energy now. They can change you temporarily or permanently. On our planet, they were used to store energy or as armor in battle."

Andy reached out and gently touched Kiba's wings.

He gave a sigh, fluttering them around her hand. "I like that."

"Wings are _extremely _sensitive." Ryon chuckled.

Andy chuckled before focusing on her wings and making them vanish.

"Fast learner." Ryusei grinned as Tsukasa came over to her. "Here's that letter for your father." He handed her a formal looking envelope.

She nodded and stuck it in her pocket. "Thanks. What did the heads have to say?"

"They are cautiously optimistic." He ruffled his hair. "But they don't want to jump the gun and announce peace just yet."

"That's probably wise. Make sure the Empire has themselves together and talks can be done between them beforehand."

He nodded. "When are you two leaving?"

Andy looked over at Kiba, "I did leave kind of in a rush.. We might want to head there soon. What do you think?"

Kiba shrugged. "We could leave tomorrow?"

She nodded, "Alright."

Tsukasa gave her a smile. "Then we should figure out what we're going to do now." He looked at Ryon. "Are you guys leaving or not?"

Ryon frowned. "We'll decide tonight. Don't worry, we won't just disappear on you."

Andy nodded again, looking around at the group. "Why don't we just take the rest of the day to rest and relax?"

Kiba nodded as Tsukasa laughed. "He just wants to cuddle with you."

Andy chuckled giving Kiba a kiss on the cheek.

His wings vanished as he turned red.

"Scoot before I make you do chores or something." Tsukasa moved to Daiki's side and began speaking quietly.

Andy pushed herself to her feet and held a hand out to Kiba.

He took it and headed for a small cabin nestled in the meadow. "This is my place when we're not on the ship."

Andy nodded slowly, "Aren't you almost always on the ship?"

"Aside from repairs, recuperation or house arrest." He gave her a grin.

She chuckled, "Some time I'll have to show you Eshana."

"I'm looking forward to it." He stopped walking and kissed her hungrily.

She kissed him back, wrapping her hands in his hair.

He broke the kiss reluctantly and began to go toward the cabin again. "We should get inside before someone sees us."

She nodded and followed him.

He unlocked the door and brought her inside a homey looking room. He tossed the key onto a table, then picked her up and carried her up the stairs. He laid her down on a bed, then lay down beside her and kissed her again slowly.

She kissed back before pulling away, "I love you."

He closed his eyes blissfully. "Say that again.."

She chuckled, "I love you."

He opened his eyes and locked gazes with her. "I love you too. So much I sometimes think I'll lose my mind."

She smiled softly, "I want to spend eternity with you."

"Absolutely. I never want to leave you." He reached for her.

"I'm glad."

He kissed her, fumbling with her shirt. "I need to be with you."

She smiled, "I need you too." She kissed him hard, running her hand up his chest.

He stripped his shirt off, then hers. He kissed where her heart lay softly. "You now have two hearts."

She kissed him gently, running a hand through his hair.

He smiled softly, then claimed her mouth again as he sank onto the bed.


	5. Chapter 5

Andy woke, seeing sunlight shining through the window. She looked over at Kiba with a smile.

He was still asleep, his hair messy as he curled up beside her.

She watched him for a while before running her hand through his hair. She wished every morning could be like that, waking up next to him, the world at peace.

A slow smile crept onto his face as his eyes blinked open. "Morning."

"Morning."

He stretched, then kissed her. Before he could do anything else, there was a sharp knock at the door. He groaned, then went down the stairs.

A minute later, he was running back into the room. "We have to go _now_!"

Andy nodded, standing up and fixing her clothes.

"Your father sent a message to the Valkyrie. He says an unknown enemy is attacking the Palace. People are falling down dead."

Andy's eyes narrowed, "Sounds like Void.. I wonder who else possesses that power.."

"Whoever it is, I don't think they are on our side." They ran for a fighter.

"Maybe you shouldn't go.. Stay here and stay safe.."

"Are you insane? Leave you with a maniac who wants to drain the life from you like a snack?" He paused and looked at her. "The only way I'm not going is if I'm dead."

"I can drain energy too, we'll be evenly matched. If they try to drain you though, I have to try to gather more energy to keep you alive.. I just don't want you getting hurt if I can't protect you from them."

He sighed. "I understand, but I can't just wait here not knowing.."

"Alright.. Let's go." She climbed into the fighter and buckled in. She then started speaking, "I hope this works out.."

He climbed in beside her. "Well, if it doesn't.. Just blame me." He keyed liftoff and set course for the Palace.

"My people were raised knowing this kind of power existed, but it's forbidden... I wonder how many other planets know how to drain people. It's not something to be taken lightly." She sighed. "I'm probably going to be in so much trouble when I do go home.."

Kiba reached over and squeezed her hand. "No use worrying at what hasn't happened yet."

"Not only did I drain people but I took Void's driver.. Though it was to help fight against enemies during a raid. And technically the driver belongs to me anyway..." She shook her head, "Doesn't matter, I've done what I've done and can only accept the consequences. At least if I get exiled I still have you."

He grinned. "Yep. We can just go live in that cabin and never leave."

"Someday I'm going to be Empress.. I'll have to leave the cabin at some point."

He scowled. "Is there _anyone_ else?"

She shook her head, "Unless he's hiding other children. He's not Avery's dad."

"Damn. Does that make me your consort?" He chuckled. "I could get used to that I guess. As long as you take care of me."

She laughed, "Of course I'll take care of you. And yeah, I guess you are my consort."

"I like that title better than King." He slowed the fighter as they neared the Palace. "By the gods…"

It was little more than rubble, fires still burning in a few places. Bodies lay strewn among the debris.

Andy stared in shock, "We have to find him.."

Kiba gave a grim nod, bringing the fighter to land nearby. He helped Andy out, then scanned the area. "I don't see anyone. Think they left?"

There was a terrified scream, then a tall woman emerged from the ruins. In one hand she dragged the semi conscious Prince. She stopped as she caught sight of Andy. "_**You**_…"

The word was dripping with venom.

"Zara?" Andy looked at her in surprise.

"So the Princess is you? I should have known. Being the daughter of one leader isn't enough? You have to be the daughter of the Emperor too?"

"It's not like I asked or wanted to be born in the positions I am."

"You have no problem taking advantage of them though, do you?" Zara glanced at Kiba. "Did the Princess actually get a boyfriend? Will I have to take care of him after you're gone? Maybe he's just in it for the power.. You should come to the winning side."

Kiba snarled at her, reaching for his pistol.

Zara sighed. "Oh well." She waved her hand as her eyes began to glow.

Kiba gasped and fell to his knees, his eyes dimming rapidly.

Andy focused on Zara, beginning to pull energy from her while she was distracted with Kiba.

She turned her attention back to Andy, dropping the Prince and picking up a large piece of rubble with her mind. "I'm ascending the throne of two planets today." Zara threw it as she laughed.

Andy dodged quickly, pulling out the Void driver and placing it around her waist.

Zara hissed as someone fired a laser at her back. She turned, but there was no one there.

"Andy.. you can't fight her. Run away.." Alaric's voice was weak.

Andy pressed a few buttons and morphed, silver armor covering her quickly. She pulled out a pistol and aimed it at Zara. "Why are you doing this?"

"Because I desire power. I want what you have." Zara smiled coldly. "But I can see we'll just have to disagree. I'm not up for a fight today, so I'll just have to see you some other time." She waved, then vanished.

Andy rushed to Kiba's side and checked him over.

His breathing was erratic, his face pale. His eyes struggled to focus on her. "Are-are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm more worried about you right now," she said softly. She focused and pulled energy in from the planet and pushed it into him.

"Your father..?" He took a shaky breath as his face began to resume color.

"I'll take care of him too, okay?" She stayed with him for a few more minutes, pushing the energy into him. She finally stood and went to her father and knelt by him, starting to heal what she could.

He gave her a tiny smile. "I'm glad you're okay."

"You'll be okay too," she said quietly.

"Andy? We have a problem.." Kiba's voice was strained.

Andy looked over in confusion. She saw a man with a knife to Kiba's throat.

"Hey, why don't you put the knife down and we can work things out, okay?"

"Who are you guys?"

She noticed his Empire attire, "I'm Alaric's daughter."

The man's eyes narrowed, "Since when does he have a daughter?"

"I was hidden most of my life. Look, I'm even trying to help him?"

The man pulled the knife away but continued to watch Andy intently.

Andy looked back to her father and continued to try to heal him.

"Akasa, stand down. I'll be fine. They aren't the enemy." Alaric sat up slowly.

"Who was that person anyway?" Akasa asked.

"Her name is Zara. She's a bit crazy but I never thought she'd be like this. I knew she slightly idolized Void.. I should have seen the signs sooner."

"A _bit_ crazy? Look around. Think she's completely mad." Kiba moved away from Akasa warily.

"We have to find a way to stop her," Akasa spoke.

"I know. But with her powers, there's not many people who can take her on," Andy answered.

Kiba sighed. "She's going to keep coming after you, isn't she?"

"She always was jealous of my position as future leader of Eshana. Now that I'm also Princess of the Empire, she has even more against me. Plus my mom exiled her for trying to steal the Void driver and knowing that I have it.."

"_Shit_. So much for a peaceful life." Kiba stared at the ground.

"I'll take care of her. It's mostly my fault anyway."

"She's going to kill you! The only thing I hope is she kills me first.." Kiba got to his feet and began walking away, his eyes staring at the ground.

Andy sighed and looked at her father, "So how were things going before the attack? Was everyone listening to you? Have you made any announcements?"

"I've issued a cease fire. Was waiting to hear from some of the military leaders. Did you speak to the Resistance?"

"A friend did. They sent a letter," she pulled it from her pocket.

He accepted it nervously. "I hope they want to talk."

She sighed and looked around at the rubble. "Do you have anywhere to go with the Palace destroyed?"

"There is more than one palace, dear daughter. Akasa knows where. You might want to find that young man. We don't know if Zara is hiding here or not."

Andy nodded and headed off to look for Kiba. She wandered around, searching for him while trying to avoid the rubble and bodies.

Suddenly she heard him cry out and then go silent under the sound of fists hitting flesh.

Andy rushed toward the noise and noticed he was being held by some men dressed in Empire attire. "Get away from him!"

They looked up and one snarled at her. "You traitorous bitch!" He motioned for the others to drop the unconscious and badly beaten Kiba to the ground. He began to stalk towards her. "You took our Emperor.."

"What are you talking about?" She backed up, trying to focus on his energy.

"Died of natural causes? _I_ saw you. You're a witch!"

She finally focused on his energy enough and quickly drained him before he could reach her. She looked up at the others quickly.

One pulled a weapon and fired quickly at her as the other headed back toward an awakening Kiba. "Let him watch you die."

Andy put her hand on the wound that was now bleeding. She closed her eyes and tried to focus on the men's energy but she struggled as the pain grew stronger. She fell to her knees, now staring at the men, still trying to read their energies.

The one with the weapon laughed as he watched her. The other man hefted a now panicked Kiba to his feet, restraining his arms behind him as he dragged the man toward them.

"See that? She's going to die. You're going to watch, then we're going to finish you off slow, you resistance scum."

Kiba struggled to get free until a well placed punch knocked the wind from him. He sank to his knees, his eyes locked on Andy as he struggled for breath.

Andy finally caught the energy signature of one of the men and started draining him. She struggled to keep her eyes open as the man fell to the ground. She then looked at the other one with unfocused eyes.

Kiba jumped up as the man restraining him fell and attacked the man with the weapon. They struggled for a few moments, then there was the sound of a shot. A few seconds later, there was another and the Empire man fell backwards.

Kiba stumbled towards Andy, a bloodstain blossoming on his chest. He never reached her, falling facedown a few feet away. He raised his head, his eyes pleading as he reached out his hand.

Andy struggled to move but managed to get close enough to grab it. It took all her energy to focus, but she managed to pull in some energy from the planet. She pushed it into Kiba, hoping it would help heal him even though she couldn't focus enough to pinpoint where the energy was going. A puddle of blood was now surrounding her and she couldn't keep her eyes open anymore.

"ANDY! KIBA!" Tet ran toward them, screaming into his comm for medtechs. He knelt beside Andy, beginning first aid. "Don't you two _dare_ die on us!"

Andy struggled to open her eyes, trying to focus on him as she continued to push energy into Kiba. The process was slowing as she lost more of her own energy.

Tet moved to Kiba as medtechs arrived and began to treat and move Andy.

He fought tears as Kiba lay pale and unresponsive in his arms. His pulse was weak and erratic.

Tet put pressure on the wound, praying desperately that they'd both survive. He relinquished his brother to the medtechs as they began to treat him.

Andy was soon unconscious. When she woke again, she blinked her eyes open slowly and tried to look around. She noticed Kiba in a bed next to her so she weakly pushed herself up and went to check him over.

Internal injuries, head trauma, serious blood loss. Severe damage to one lung. He was hooked up to multiple machines, an IV of pain medicine and another of blood were attached to his arms. He lay pale and heavily sedated.

Andy focused on trying to heal him, leaning heavily on his bed as she did so. She worked for about twenty minutes before she heard footsteps approaching the room.

"Andy! You shouldn't be doing that." Tet grabbed her to keep her from falling. "You're injured pretty badly. You need to heal."

She nodded slowly, looking back at Kiba and noticing just a bit of his color was beginning to return.

Tet sighed, forcing her back to her bed. "He's stable. So are you, but neither of you are moving from here for awhile unless you pull another miracle off. Just rest."

"Where did my dad and Akasa go..?" she remembered.

"They sent a transmission. Your father said he was safe on another Empire planet. He said he hoped you were safe and he'd contact you soon."

She nodded sleepily. "Thanks."

"Rest. If I find you up again, I'll sedate you. Understood?"

"I just wanted to help.."

Tet smiled. "That's why we love you. Never worried about yourself. Just sleep." He brushed her hair back and kissed her forehead before leaving.

Andy looked over at Kiba and watched him before falling to sleep. She slept peacefully for a while until images of Zara popped into her dreams. They morphed into Zara killing Kiba and the crew, making her watch it all. Her breathing was rapid which was the only real sign on the outside that anything was wrong.

"Andy! Wake up."

The nightmares morphed again, replacing Zara with Void. She saw herself as Aiko, killing everyone she loved. Tears started streaking her face.

"Andy wake up!" Somebody was shaking her hard.

Her eyes flew open, trying to focus. She was almost hyperventilating as she tried to push herself up onto her elbows.

"Deep breaths. Just relax, you're safe." Tak's face came into view, his eyes sympathetic.

When she finally got more air in, she muttered a quiet, "sorry."

"No need to apologize. I know all about nightmares." Tak released her shoulders with a small smile.

"How's everything going?" She asked after a few moments.

"Everything's actually been quiet. Your father sent a ship for you. Kiba's still down. The Furies have decided to stay."

Andy nodded, "That's good." She pushed herself up into a sitting position with a slight wince. She looked over at Kiba with concern. "How is he doing?"

"He's better. We stopped the sedative but he still hasn't woken up. Not surprising with all the injuries."

Andy nodded again, "And you said my father sent a ship? Did he say anything?"

"He has put out a warning and reward for this Zara person. She hasn't popped back up yet. The ship is for you. He hopes you use it for peace and sends his love. He's concerned about your injuries."

Andy raised an eyebrow, "He's just giving me a ship? How big is it?"

Tak chuckled. "Much bigger than the Valkyrie. He also sent several people as bodyguards. 3 girls and 3 guys."

"So, we can put the Valkyrie in it and use it instead? And I'm not sure I need bodyguards.."

"We can, if you want. And your father insisted, citing Zara's obsession with you." Tak shrugged.

"She is obsessed, that's for sure.. It's only a matter of time before she comes looking.. Maybe I should just leave with my bodyguards so none of you get hurt?" She looked down at the bed.

"Are you insane? First off, Kiba would murder me painfully. Second, we all had a meeting while you were asleep. We've pledged our lives to your protection. So you can't get rid of us that easily." Tak gave her a confident smile and a wink.

"Why do so much for me?"

"You _saved _us. You saved my _son_, when I was sure he was going to die. You saved Tsukasa and Daiki from killing their brothers. You risked your life to come back after the attack to heal us. And don't get me started on Kiba." Tak gave her a look. "You seriously thought we'd just _abandon _you when you have a dangerous madwoman after you?"

Andy shrugged, "I don't feel like I've done that much.. And keeping yourselves safe is more important.."

Tak rolled his eyes. "Most of us wouldn't be _alive_ if not for you. And we're part of the Resistance, being in danger is a job requirement."

Andy nodded slowly, "Alright."

He grinned. "Good. So what do you feel up to doing? You've been asleep for awhile and are almost healed. You're still weak though, so take it slow."

"I should probably go meet my bodyguards.. Right?"

"Might be a good idea. I'll bring them to the conference room. Oh yeah, we're on the ship right now. Your father said it would be an honor to have you name it."

Andy raised an eyebrow, "I have no idea how to name a ship. Any ideas?"

"Usually a ship's name reflects its mission.."

Andy nodded, "I'll think on it. I'll head to the conference room." She pushed herself out of bed, going to Kiba's side. She brushed her hand through his hair before kissing his cheek. She headed down the hall, glancing into each room until she found the right one.

Fifteen minutes later, Tak knocked, then led the six people in and disappeared.

Andy stared at them for a moment before introducing herself, "I'm Andy. Nice to meet you."

"I'm Hiroki and this is Hikaru and Hibiki." A man with light brown hair spoke.

Then one of the girls spoke, "I'm Hana, this is Meiko and Kiko."

"I don't feel it necessary to have a bodyguard in the first place, but especially not on the ship. You can talk to Tsukasa and he can get you assigned to ship tasks. I'll let you know when we do have a mission."

They nodded in understanding.

"Princess, it's an honor working for you," Kiko smiled.

"You can just call me Andy, no need for princess. And thank you for being here. You can go now."

They bowed and exited the room. Andy headed out and wandered the halls, finally coming to the bridge.

Tsukasa looked at her in surprise. "Are you strong enough to be up?"

"For a little bit," she nodded. "How do you like the ship?"

He gave a chuckle. "Why your dad gave us a ship we could fit the whole Resistance in and have half of the ship left over is beyond me. But it is nice. Your father said it's brand new."

"Nice. What I've seen looks good. How's it's shields and fighting capabilities?"

Tet grinned. "Top of the line. Hopefully we don't have to fight much with this ceasefire in place."

Andy nodded and looked around at how big just the bridge was. "Has everyone been assigned new rooms?"

"Yeah. The Furies are off doing something. When they get back, we'll launch." Tsukasa sat down in one of the side chairs. He strategically didn't sit in the Captain's seat.

Andy nodded, "What do you think of the name Heiwa?"

Tsukasa searched for the name's meaning in his memory, then nodded with a smile. "I think it's perfect."

"I told my bodyguards to come check with you for what kind of chores or jobs they can do. I don't know the first thing about running a ship," she admitted.

He laughed, then shrugged. "Wonder if any of them have medical training? We are coming to learn we can't always count on your gift."

Andy sighed, "We can ask them. And I can always train them some too."

"We've been busy so I haven't gotten to check. How is he?"

"Kiba? He's alright. I might do a bit more healing on him in a bit but I was trying to not wear myself out too quickly."

"What the hell happened anyway? All I know is I found both of you close to death and three bodies." Tet's voice was tight.

"They were mad and accusing me of killing the Emperor. Which of course, I did do.. but they were taking it out on me and then because he's Resistance.."

Everyone winced, then froze as Ryon's weak voice came over comm. "Help us.."

"Pinpoint their location," Andy ordered.

Tet and Tak quickly checked their consoles.

"Got them! They're several miles north of us." Tet gave her a panicked look. "I'm only reading three weak life signs. All eight of them _were_ together.."

"Alright, one of you come with me and we'll check on them. Try not to worry." She said before heading to the door.

Tsukasa followed her grimly.

They headed off the ship and started the walk toward them. She tried to go fast but was already feeling weak from her still healing injuries.

Tsukasa moved to her side, supporting her. "You should have stayed on the Heiwa."

"They most likely need medical attention," Andy argued. They finally made it and she looked around, searching for any sign of the boys.

Ryusei suddenly stumbled toward her, his face flushed as he struggled to breathe. "Andy…"

She moved to him, "What happened?"

"Men attacked us.. Forced us to drink something.." He collapsed in her arms unconscious. His pulse was rapid and erratic, his breathing labored.

Andy cursed and laid him gently on the ground.

"Find the others." She pulled a few things from her pocket, drawing a blood sample from Ryusei's wrist. She worked on trying to stabilize him and waited for Tsukasa to return before asking, "Do you know how to test for poison?"

His eyes were grim as he nodded. "They're gone."

She held out the vial, "Test for type of poison, make enough antidote for all of them." She went back to trying to keep Ryusei alive.

He didn't argue, just took the vial and raced toward the Heiwa.

"S-s-sorry.." Ryusei's eyes cracked open. "We should have stayed on ship..You're hurt.."

"It's okay. Don't worry about me. Everything will be alright," she said softly.

He arched his back and began to tremble. "Andy it _hurts_.."

"I know, I know. The pain will be gone soon. We're getting you some medicine to help."

He nodded weakly. "The others?"

"I'm going to see what I can do for them when I'm done taking care of you."

Blood started streaming from his nose and his trembling turned into full convulsions. His eyes rolled up.

Andy continued to try to help, praying Tsukasa would return quickly.

Tsukasa fell to his knees. "The poison is Luphix. I made the antidote Suzol. Here." He held out a large syringe of a dark purple liquid.

Andy injected some into Ryusei and watched, hoping it would work quickly.

His convulsions ceased, his breathing beginning to stabilize. His pulse was still weak, but also stabilizing.

Andy stood and moved away to the others. "Keep an eye on him and let me know if he gets worse." She injected the medicine into each of the teens before focusing her energy on them. She drew in more energy from the planet and forced it into them quickly.

They shuddered, taking in air. They lay unconscious under her gaze.

Tsukasa sighed. "I think Ryusei being only half saved him."

Andy nodded, "Get the crew to get them back to the infirmary.."

He touched his comm, calling the others.

Tak was pacing when Andy returned. "If I find the bastards.."

"I know," she nodded in understanding before sinking into a chair.

"They targeted them! Here I thought the Resistance was for peace.. Yet they'd target kids just because they're a little different. Makes me wonder why I even fight."

"There's going to be good and bad people on both sides. Don't let one group change your mind about the whole resistance," she said quietly.

He sank down next to her. "He's all I've got. I can't lose him."

"I know," she nodded. "And I'll do everything I can to help keep him alive."

"I know you will." He gave her a tiny smile.

Andy smiled back before closing her eyes to rest for a moment.

"Excuse me? I was told you needed a doctor.." A brown haired man asked nervously.

She opened her eyes and raised an eyebrow, "Who are you?"

"Hiro Itsuki." He bowed before continuing. "I was looking for ship assignments and someone said that you had no real medical personnel. So I decided to offer my services."

"Are you Resistance or Empire?"

"Neither. I travel from world to world helping people if I can."

She nodded, "Alright. I'm Andy. I'm the medic but I could use some help, especially when I get injured too."

He bowed again. "I appreciate you allowing me to join your crew. If at any time I perform unsatisfactorily, you may drop me off anywhere of your choosing."

"I'm sure you'll do fine. Our crew is a mix of Empire and Resistance members, but we all just want peace here."

He gave a slight smile. "Are you alright? You look pale."

"I'm healing from a bad injury. I was okay but then a bunch of the crew were poisoned and I had to focus on reviving them.." she sighed and pushed herself up. "I'll show you to the infirmary so you know where you'll be working."

Tak stood as well, taking one arm as Hiro took the other. They escorted her to the infirmary.

Andy pointed around and showed him a few things before climbing into bed, "I'm sure Tak here can assign you a room. If you need anything just let me know."

Tak saluted with a grin as Hiro nodded. "I appreciate it. I'll monitor the patients." He moved toward the boys.

Andy glanced over at Kiba before quickly falling asleep.

She woke slowly, glancing around to see who was still in the infirmary.

Kiba lay next to her still, though the machines were gone. Ryusei and Ryon still lay unconscious, but the rest of the boys were missing.

Hiro moved to her side with a soft smile. "How are you feeling?"

She was quiet for a moment before answering, "Better. Still a little sore but not as exhausted."

"Good." He watched her for a moment. "You didn't tell me you were the Princess."

She shrugged, "Didn't seem important at the time."

He laughed softly. "The crew warned me about this."

"About what?"

"That you don't think certain things are important. Including your own health." He grew stern. "I won't tolerate that. You will tell me when you get injured, you understand?"

"It's not that I don't think my health is important.. It's just that everyone else's health comes first," she looked down at the bed.

Hiro smirked. "Well, now you have me so you don't have to worry as much."

She nodded, "Thank you."

He grew quiet. "The crew says you're something of a miracle worker. We just may need one."

She sighed, "I don't try to be a miracle worker, but I guess I do help quite a bit."

Hiro watched the two boys in silence, his face serious.

She pushed herself up and went over to them, scanning them over.

Both boys were suffering organ failure, Ryon had what appeared to be some brain damage as well.

"As close as I can determine, the poison did more damage due to Ryusei's physiology. Ryon was given triple the poison. I administered more antidote, but neither are responding well. I fear I can do no more."

Andy went to Ryusei, focusing on trying to help heal his organs. After about an hour, she moved to Ryon and worked on healing him. She spent a few hours on him before stepping away. "We'll see how they do now."

Hiro gave a relieved smile as Kiba began to stir.

"Andy!" Kiba shot up, then gasped as pain overtook him.

Andy went to his side, pushing energy into him to try to help with the pain, "Everything is alright. Just calm down."

"He shot you.." His voice was low and angry. "I thought I'd lost you.. And I couldn't even avenge you."

"It's alright. I'm okay and you're okay." She wrapped her arms around him.

He clung to her for a moment, then asked "Who's he and why are the boys hurt?"

"This is our new doctor. And they were poisoned."

"Poisoned? By who? Why?" He watched the boys in alarm.

"Some resistance assholes."

He let out a growl. "Point me at them."

"Don't know where they went, but don't worry, they'll be taken care of if we ever find them."

He leaned on her shoulder. "Are you really okay?"

"Yeah. Just a little sore still."

"Why am I still tired? I've been sleeping all this time, haven't I?"

"I'm betting your body is still just trying to heal everything and that takes a lot of energy."

"Can I sleep with you?" He asked quietly.

"Why don't we go find our new room? We can go sleep there."

Hiro handed her a bottle of pain medication, then headed for the office silently.

Andy took the bottle and stuck it in her pocket before helping Kiba out of bed.

He leaned heavily on her, his eyes half closed.

Andy checked the room listing and went to where theirs was. She opened the door, surprised at how big it was.

Kiba looked up briefly, shock on his face before he grimaced.

She helped get him to the bed, laying him down before climbing in next to him. She sighed and closed her eyes as she cuddled up against him.

He winced, then closed his eyes as he wrapped his arms around her.


	6. Chapter 6

"Kiba's gone missing." Tsukasa's voice was quiet, his eyes hesitant as he told Andy the news. "He was headed for Chandra, but never got there."

Andy gave him a worried look, "The Empire isn't active right now, so unless it was a group working on their own.." Her eyes darkened, "Or Zara."

"That's what I'm afraid of." He paced the room anxiously.

The comm suddenly crackled to life. "Heiwa, are you receiving?" Kiba's voice was staticy.

"Kiba, where have you been?" Andy asked.

"Had a run in with some bounty hunters. My fighter is damaged and I just got my comm up." He sounded normal, but something was setting off her alarms.

"Alright. I'll meet you in the bay," she answered. After clicking the comm off she looked at Tsukasa, "Something doesn't feel right."

He nodded. "Since when does it take _him_ a week to get a comm running?"

"We'll keep an eye on him," she said quietly before heading toward the bay.

Kiba's fighter landed hard, the damage visible. He hurried to her side, kissing her hard. "I've missed you so much.."

"I've missed you too," she gave him a small smile. "Are you hurt at all?"

"Truthfully? I've got some bruises, a wicked migraine and this." He showed her a semi healed puncture mark on his neck. "I don't know if the hunters drugged me at all. I hit my head when I crashed and don't remember much."

Her eyes narrowed but she nodded, "Let's get you to the infirmary so I can heal you up."

He gave her a smile, wrapping an arm around her waist. "I'm so glad to be back in friendly territory. Chandra is so uninviting now."

She nodded slowly before leading him to the infirmary. She worked on healing up his wounds but kept glancing over at him suspiciously.

"I am happy to report everyone supports Tsukasa as King, so I can go back to being lazy. Although I may ask for a salary if he keeps making me his errand boy." He raised an eyebrow at her. "Are you mad at me or something?"

"No, I'm not," she gave him a soft smile.

"That's reassuring." He yawned. "Feel like I could sleep for a month. Wanna nap with me?"

She nodded, "Alright." She stood and headed for the door.

He followed, absently rubbing his neck as he entered their room and headed for the bed.

Andy climbed in next to him, cuddling up against him but her mind was awake and focusing on the inconsistencies in his story to what Tsukasa told her.

His breathing quieted as he drifted off.

Ten minutes later, he twitched. His hands moved to Andy's throat as his eyes opened. "Time to die, Princess.." He began squeezing.

Andy's eyes opened in shock and she tried to fight him off. She reached in her pocket and clicked the comm button, hoping Tsukasa or one of the others would hear something and help. She tried to kick at Kiba but he dodged quickly. She then clawed at his hands as she struggled to get in air.

His eyes stared at her, the pupils blown and cloudy. "Stop fighting! Die with some dignity, rich girl." He gave a short laugh. "Daddy can't save you. How do you like my new toy?"

Andy struggled but was slowing. She tried to think of ideas to help but the only thing that crossed her mind was draining him. She didn't want to do that to Kiba, even if he was under control. She kept trying to claw at him, her eyes starting to blur.

He suddenly let go, his hands going to his head. "NO! I won't do this!" He stiffened as a stun blast hit him, then sank to the floor.

Tsukasa raced to Andy's side, keeping his blaster trained on his brother. "Are you alright?"

She coughed as she tried to breathe. Finally she choked out, "Zara.. control.."

Tsukasa cursed, hitting his comm and ordering H team to the room. When they arrived, he had them restrain Kiba, then looked at her. "Where should I put him?"

"Restrain him in the infirmary.. I want to check him over," she said quietly, her voice raw.

The men nodded, hefting the unconscious man and exiting the room.

Tsukasa looked at her. "You up for this? You don't look so good."

She nodded slowly, rubbing her throat which was beginning to bruise.

She stood, swaying slightly before heading to the door. When she got to the infirmary, she looked Kiba over before running a few brain scans. She tried a few healing techniques to try to get Kiba back under control before waiting to see what would happen when he woke.

His eyes shot open and he stared in shock. "What's happening to me? I keep hearing her voice in my head… You have to stop me, Andy!"

"Don't worry," she said softly. "Do you still hear her?"

"Yes. She's muffled but getting stronger. She wants me to kill you! I won't do it! I won't!" He was growing frantic now, fighting the control. "She won't let me go! You have to take me out before I give in!" His arms suddenly broke the restraints as his eyes went unfocused.

"How poetic. True loves killing each other.." His voice grew jubilant.

Andy growled. Her mind jumped to what Kiba said.. Take him out. If she killed him, would it break the connection? Would it still be there when she revived him? What if she couldn't revive him? She shook her head, trying to figure out the best course of action.

He grabbed a scalpel from a tray and advanced on her haltingly. "Andy.. stop me. _Please_…"

He swung it at her with a cold laugh. "Not going to get away from me so easily.."

Andy took a deep breath and focused, locking onto Kiba's energy. She quickly drained him, catching his body as it fell. She got him back onto a bed before closing her eyes. She tried to focus on pulling energy in, grabbing some from nearby stars. She pushed it into him quickly, hoping to revive him.

His body jerked, but nothing else happened. He remained limp and unresponsive.

She drew in more energy from the stars, completely draining a few and pushing the energy into him. She gave a silent prayer that it would help him.

After several long minutes, he sucked in a slow, ragged breath. He remained unconscious, his breathing gradually strengthening.

She sat down beside him, trying to rest after everything. She kept a watchful eye on him though, in case Zara was still in control of him.

Hours later, he began to stir. "What happened?"

"Do you still hear Zara?" Andy asked quietly.

He paused for a moment, then shook his head. "Think she's gone. I'm sorry. I tried to fight her.." He grimaced and held a hand to his head. "I only remember bits and pieces. Did I hurt you?"

His eyes went to her throat and he blanched.

"It's alright. I'm sorry I had to do something so drastic to break the control."

"She wanted to make you do that. She's trying to break you." He stared at the floor. "I'm afraid she'll try again and you won't be able to stop me.. Maybe you should go back to your dad."

Andy shook her head, "I'm not leaving you."

"I don't want to be the death of you..not again." He fought back tears.

Andy moved to wrap her arms around him, "It's okay. We'll get through this together, alright?"

"If it wasn't for me, Aiko wouldn't have died. Now it's happening all over again. I must be cursed…"

"You're not cursed. And Aiko died because of her own actions. I personally blame the people of Eshana."

"She would have never done it if I hadn't been killed. If I had never come, she would have had a long happy life. Now you're being targeted.. You need to get away from me."

"We don't care about long lives, we care about you and all the time we can spend with you."

He shook his head. "_I_ care. I can't let you throw your life away twice for me. If you won't leave, I will."

"I'm in danger whether you're here or not. At least you are here to help protect me. If I leave, I'm still as in danger as I am on the ship."

"_Protect you_?! I almost killed you!" His eyes were wide as he tried to sit up.

"And if she could control you, she can control anyone. My parents or brother or anyone else on this ship. It's not like you're the only one who could hurt me," she said quickly. "All I know is I can't do this alone and I don't want us to be apart."

He sagged, his head pounding. "I'm whipped." He slowly met her eyes. "Promise me if this happens again, you won't hesitate to stop me. Don't let me hurt you again. And if there's the slightest possibility the control isn't broken, don't revive me."

"I promise I'll stop you."

He sighed, laying back with a wince.

Andy moved to kiss his forehead, "Just get some sleep for now and don't worry."

"You make it sound so easy." He closed his eyes, immediately falling to sleep.


	7. Chapter 7

_**WARNING: RAPE,**_

Andy waited a few days to test anything, wanting to make sure she wasn't just late. She finally took the test, staring at the results for a few minutes before going to find Kiba.

He gave her a smile, then grew serious as he saw her face. "Andy, what's wrong?"

She shook her head, "Kiba.. we're going to have a baby."

His eyes went wide. "But..we're not married..I'm sorry."

She shook her head again, "It's alright, but I'm already pregnant so it's not like we can take it back."

Kiba gave a small chuckle. "Well, I know what I have to do now."

She raised an eyebrow at him.

"Go see your dad and make an honest woman out of you. Be back soon." He kissed her, then headed for the fighter bay.

Andy gave a small smile before heading to talk to Hiro about what she'd need to do to prepare for a baby.

"Andy! Comm for you!" Tsukasa called her to the bridge.

Andy went to the bridge before answering the comm, "Hello?"

"Andy, my dear. Have you set a date yet?" Her father asked with a smile. "I hope you won't object to me walking you down the aisle."

She chuckled, "No, everything is kind of sudden, we don't have a date planned yet. But of course you can walk me down the aisle."

"I didn't give him too much of a hard time did I?"

"I don't know, he hasn't been back yet," Andy admitted. "I thought maybe he was still with you.."

Alaric frowned. "He left after we talked.."

Worry crossed Andy's face, "I hope he hasn't run into any trouble.."

"If you need help finding him, just tell me."

"Maybe have your people keep an eye out. I'll talk to the crew and we'll start a search here."

He gave a nod, then closed the channel.

A minute later, it buzzed again.

"Hello?" Andy answered once more.

The screen showed one of the castle guards. "Milady. I hate to be the one to tell you this, but your lover has abandoned you."

She stared at him in confusion, "He just asked to marry me.. why would he abandon me?"

The guard shook his head. "I do not know. After meeting with the Emperor, he came to me and asked for help. He said he was not ready for marriage or fatherhood and desired to disappear. Forgive me, I gave him the name of someone in the village." He bowed deeply in contrition.

"I don't.. understand.." Andy stared in shock before taking a deep breath. "Thank you." She clicked the comm off and continued to stare at it as her mind tried to make sense of everything.

Tsukasa moved to her side. "What's wrong?"

"Kiba went and asked my father if he could marry me, but then a guard said he then asked to disappear.." she took a deep breath. "I had just told him I'm pregnant.."

His face darkened. "No way my brother would do that. He's gotta be lying. Kiba loves you, he'd never abandon you. Especially not when you carry his child."

"Then why hasn't he returned..?" Andy asked quietly.

Tsukasa went silent.

Andy sighed, "Have people keep an eye out for him just in case.." she headed off the bridge and went to their room. Tears filled her eyes and she ended up crying herself to sleep.

Over the next months, Kiba's name was brought up less and less. No one had seen anything from him and Andy just accepted she'd have to raise their child herself.

Ryon passed her in the hall, hunched over and holding his head.

"Hey, what's wrong?" She stopped him.

"The headaches..they're back worse than ever.." He managed to get out through gritted teeth.

She held a hand to his head, pushing energy into him to try to help.

"They started after…" He dropped his eyes. "They aren't mine..I just don't know who they belong to."

She nodded, helping him to the infirmary. She gave him something to help with the pain. "Hopefully this will help."

She headed out of the infirmary and headed to her room. Her hand went to her belly, knowing she didn't have a whole lot longer until the baby would arrive. She was nervous but somewhat excited and she knew the crew would help her out as well. Her mind flashed to her mom and she suddenly got the urge to visit her. It'd been a while since she'd been back home and she was really starting to miss all the beaches and dolphins, along with her mom and brother.

She got a small bag packed and headed off to tell Tsukasa where she was going. When she was done, she climbed in a small ship and headed off toward home. She landed on a beach and worked on climbing out of the ship. It was then she noticed a figure approaching her.

It stalked toward her like a cat going after prey. As it grew closer, she suddenly saw it was Kiba. His eyes were blank as if he was moving under someone else's control.

She backed up quickly, "Kiba...?" She reached into the ship and grabbed a small pistol to try to protect herself.

"Must retrieve child." His voice was a monotone. As he came closer, she could see evidence of prolonged beatings and there were scabbed needle marks on both arms.

"Stay away!" She pointed the gun at him, unsure if she could bring herself to shoot.

He lunged at her, his eyes never blinking. His fingers brushed her jacket.

She moved away, tripping and falling backward with a thud. She tried to scramble further away, taking a deep breath before focusing on him and beginning to drain his energy.

He stumbled, falling to his knees. He blinked rapidly, then looked at her in horror. "Andy? Where am I? What's happening..to me?" He swayed, then fell onto his back.

She moved to stand but was hit with a wave of pain. Her hand moved to her stomach for a moment before she struggled over to Kiba. "You're on Eshana. I don't know what's happening, you're the one that attacked me."

He struggled to stay conscious. "I..went to see your father. I started to head back, then I..I don't remember anything except pain..and a voice."

"You've been gone for months, Kiba." She closed her eyes and focused, pushing energy back into him to try to keep him awake. She only paused when more waves of pain moved through her.

He closed his eyes briefly, then reopened them in alarm. "Stop! I can't fight the voice in my head...it's _her_. If you restore me, she'll take over again."

"Maybe if I drain you completely then revive you, she'll be gone like before?" She suggested.

"I don't know. She tried to wipe me this time." Tears began to streak his cheeks. "I'm sorry..you've been alone all this time...You must hate me now.."

"I didn't know what to think. I never thought you'd leave me but then you never came back.." she kissed his cheek. "All I know is I've missed you."

He looked at her sadly. "I've missed you too. But you need to end this before she gets control back." He reached for her hand. "You can't take the chance of her getting the baby. You have to be strong to raise it alone."

"Like I said, I'll drain you, but I'm going to revive you again and again until she's gone from your mind." She said quietly, squeezing his hand tightly.

"This is the second time she's taken control of me. You can't keep draining me and she won't stop. There _can't_ be a third time, Andy. I won't be able to stand it if I do something to you or the baby.." He paused as he fought his eyes closing. "You have to let me go.."

"I just found you again! I'm not losing you! I don't care what I have to do, but I'm not giving up on you."

She kissed his lips softly before taking a breath and finished draining him. She then focused on the planet around her and drew in energy, pushing it into him. She let out a groan when more pain shot through her but continued to focus. She finally realized what the pain was and cursed but continued on anyway, refusing to lose Kiba.

His eyes fluttered open, but they were blank. He grabbed her throat and began to squeeze relentlessly.

She put a hand on his head, shoving light into his mind as her other hand fought off his.

Suddenly he jerked, his eyes clearing. He dropped his hand as if it had been burnt and scrambled away with a cry of terror. He began to shake, silent sobs racking his body.

"Shh, it's alright," she said softly after catching her breath. She went to him and wrapped her arms around him tightly.

"I almost killed you again...I'm dangerous. You have to get away from me." He squeezed his eyes shut as tears streamed down his face.

"I trust you," she said quietly before closing her eyes and wincing.

"What's wrong?" He asked in alarm, his eyes wide.

She shook her head and tried to smile but another wave of pain hit her.

He shakily reached out a hand to her stomach, then realization dawned. "You're having the baby.."

She moved to sit on the sand next to him, "Kind of a bad time, huh?"

He chuckled softly. "It could be worse. We could be in the middle of battle."

She gave a small smile before wrapping her arms around her belly.

"You think we can reach your mom in time?"

"I don't know," she admitted.

"Then I guess it's up to me. Do you have anything in the fighter we can use?"

"There's a bag with some clothes and a medpack.."

"Alright." He stood slowly, making his way to the ship. He returned a few minutes later with a blanket and the medpack. "Let's get you laying down on this."

She nodded, moving to the blanket. "I'm sorry.. You shouldn't have to deal with this."

"It's my baby too. Why should you get stuck alone with the hard part?" He laughed and opened the medpack. "You want a painkiller?"

"Do you even have to ask that?" She smirked.

"Some women refuse." He injected her, then gently raised and opened her legs after removing her underwear. "Yeah, definitely anxious to be born. In a few moments, you have to push, alright?"

She nodded, doing as instructed.

He waited, then said "Push. As hard as you can."

She did, praying the pain would be worth it.

Seconds later, a baby wailed loudly.

She gave a sigh of relief.

"It's a girl and she's almost as beautiful as you." Kiba chuckled as he handed the baby over.

"Hi, sweetie," Andy took her gently, holding her close.

He gave them each a kiss, then sat back and sighed. "Your mom's or back to the Heiwa?"

"Let's stop at mom's to rest for a few then we can head home." She looked over at him, "She needs a name. Any ideas?"

"Hoshi."

"That's cute," Andy smiled. "Baby Hoshi."

"It means star."

"She is a little star, isn't she?" Andy cooed at the baby.

He grinned. "Not as bright as her mother though."

She smiled softly, handing Hoshi over so she could stand. She took the baby back and headed toward her mother's house. After some rest, they climbed in the fighter and flew back to the Heiwa.

Tsukasa and Hiro were waiting when they arrived. Tsukasa froze as Kiba climbed out behind Andy. "You sonofabitch…"

"Apparently Zara got a hold of him," Andy informed. "And the baby decided it was time to come out."

Kiba stopped, his eyes locked on his brother. "Why is he pissed?"

"Uh, well someone told us you abandoned us. And even though we didn't want to believe it, you never showed up again even after we looked.." Andy admitted.

He paled. "I didn't, I swear. I was coming back." He bolted out of the bay in panic, leaving the three of them in shock.

Andy took a deep breath and carried Hoshi to their room, hoping Kiba would be there.

He was in their shower, trembling under a heavy spray.

Andy put Hoshi in the crib before entering the bathroom. "Kiba, don't worry. We know it wasn't your fault."

"Tell that to Saka. He looked like he was going to kill me.." His voice was thick with tears as he sank to the floor of the shower. There was a faint tinge of blue to his lips as he huddled under the water.

"I'll explain the situation to everyone. I know they'll all understand, just like I do." She reached in and turned the water off, grabbing a towel and wrapping it around his shoulders. "I promise, everything will be alright."

He shook his head, his eyes distant. "Who knows what she made me do? I shouldn't be here."

His eyes began to close as she finally registered how icy his skin was. "I should just sleep forever..can't hurt anyone that way.."

"Whatever she made you do, we'll deal with it. You aren't going to hurt anyone," she assured before working on drying him off. She pulled him up and dragged him to the bed, pushing him in and wrapping him in blankets. She then laid beside him, "I love you. And we just had a baby. I can't do this alone.. I need you."

"Why would you want me? I am no good to anyone. She can take me over at any time and you would all die. Much smarter to get away from me.." His voice was drowsy, his eyes starting to close again.

"I trust you. And love isn't always smart. I love you, Kiba. I love who you are in that big heart of yours." She kissed his cheek softly, "I can't imagine how you're feeling after all of this, but I'm here for you, no matter what."

"I'm sorry for being such a burden. I love you so much." He softly kissed her cheek, then drifted off.

Andy wrapped an arm around him, falling asleep soon after.

The door chimed several hours later.

Andy rolled over and went to answer it.

Tsukasa stood there. "I wanted to apologize. Is he here?"

Andy nodded, "Just so you know, he was held by Zara all this time. He's not handling things very well right now.."

"This whole time that insane bitch was torturing him? I'm going to vaporize her." He scowled. "How bad is his mental state?"

"He's afraid he'll be taken over again and kill us all, he thinks he's a burden and shouldn't be here... I hate seeing him like this.. I wish I could take all his pain away."

Tsukasa winced. "I'm sure my reaction didn't help things. Dammit, the last time he was like this was when Mom died..he hasn't tried anything has he?"

She shook her head, "Just took a freezing shower. I warmed him up though and he's been asleep since."

"I won't wake him then. Just stay close, okay? He might try to do something and I'd rather not go through_ that _hell again. I'll wait till he's awake and more together."

"I just hope I can help him.."

"I believe you can. You're a better listener than the shrinks in the hospital he was at." Tsukasa smiled sadly at the memory.

She nodded before looking thoughtful, "Track any chatter you can find on Zara. I want to hunt her down."

"No problem." He gave her a feral smile. "We can tag team her."

She chuckled, "Alright. Well let me know. I'm going to go check on Hoshi."

He nodded, heading down the hall and disappearing around the corner.

Andy went back in the room, going to the crib and picking Hoshi up. She held the baby close, sitting in a chair and rocking her as she glanced over at Kiba.

His eyes were rapidly moving under his lids and he whimpered softly. "No..I don't want to. Stop. Mom! Andy! Don't go…"

Andy moved to him, one arm still holding Hoshi as the other gently shook Kiba, "It's just a nightmare. Everything is okay."

He quieted, turning his head to reveal a scar she'd never seen before. It was almost unnoticeable under direct light, angled halfway across his throat. She thought back to his usual wardrobe choices of turtlenecks and scarves, realizing he kept it hidden.

She gave him a sad look, running her hand through his hair gently.

He stirred, blinking his eyes at her. "Hey. Everything alright?"

She nodded, deciding not to bring up the scar right now. "Tsukasa came to apologize and talk to you but didn't want to wake you."

"Why apologize?" Kiba sat up and rubbed his eyes. "And sorry you saw me like that earlier."

"It's alright. I love you, okay? And I don't exactly know, but I think for having been pissed. You'll have to talk to him about it. He seems pretty worried about you."

"After what you were told, I don't blame him for being pissed. He's always been worried about me." Kiba stood and grabbed a turtleneck, sliding it on silently. He looked at Hoshi and smiled. "She's so beautiful. Can't believe I made her."

"She gets all her good looks from you, you know," Andy answered.

"Unh unh. She is an offshoot of your beauty. I'm just average while you are an angel from the gods."

"You're a lot more than average to me," Andy admitted.

He blushed slightly, then kissed her. "You want anything from the kitchen?"

"Sure. I'm starving. Surprise me?"

"Anything for the angel." He left, whistling under his breath.

Andy sighed and prayed he really was doing better. She then looked down at Hoshi, smiling down at the baby.

Kiba entered the kitchen, throwing together a quick meal. He was concentrating so hard, he missed Tsukasa in the doorway.

"I'm sorry for how I acted earlier."

Kiba jumped in surprise, then shrugged. "You don't need to apologize. I would have acted the same way after being told that. No harm done." He tried to act nonchalant, but inside he was shaking.

His brother slowly walked over to him. "It did do harm. Andy told me about your shower. I shouldn't have said what I did."

Kiba tried to smile at him. "Saka, everything's fine. I should be apologizing to you for bolting like that. Not dignified in the least." He stirred the food, then turned off the stove. He began plating it up, willing his hands steady.

"Kiba, stop it. You can't pretend with me. The last time you took a shower like that, we both know what happened. I just want to make sure that doesn't happen again."

Kiba froze, gripping the counter tight as he pushed away the memories. "**I. am. Fine.** Can we drop this? I promised Andy dinner." He quickly picked up the plates and left the kitchen, avoiding Tsukasa's worried gaze.

He clenched the plates, his knuckles whitening as he made his way back to their room. Damn Saka! He didn't need the memories the other man was bringing to the surface. Better to let them lie. Easier for everyone. He paused in front of the door, taking a deep breath before entering.

"As promised, a meal fit for an angel." He gave her a small smile as he placed the plates on a table and gently took Hoshi from her. "Eat."

Andy did as instructed, watching Kiba intently.

He rocked Hoshi gently, one hand running through the dark mop of hair she'd been born with. He quietly sang under his breath, a song in an unfamiliar language.

Andy smiled softly as she watched. She finished eating and moved to him, wrapping her arms around him slowly.

He raised his head to look at her as he finished singing. "You like your meal?"

"Yes, thank you."

He gave her a small grin. "You're welcome. Nothing but the best for the best mother in the universe."

She gave him a small smile before sighing, "You know you can talk to me about anything right? I just want you to know I'm here for you if you need anything. You've been through a lot recently and it's understandable if you want to talk through any of it. But I also understand if you don't want to and I won't push you into it."

He sighed softly, rising and putting Hoshi in the crib. As he turned back to her, he absently ran his hand over the scar on his neck. "I know Saka means well, but he pushes too hard. He did back then too, although my father was worse. I couldn't handle it then, but I'm stronger now. So don't worry about me okay?" The smile he gave her was tight, his eyes stormy.

"I love you, so I'm always going to worry. But I'll try not to push. I just love you so much, I hate seeing you struggle."

He sat down on the bed, his hand dropping to his lap. "I've struggled all my life. Why should now be any different?" He looked at her, his eyes haunted. "I killed my mother twice, you know."

She took his hand, "What happened?"

"The first time was when she delivered me. The doctors brought her back, but she was always weak afterwards. Tet wasn't planned, but she managed somehow. Then when I was sixteen.."

His eyes focused on the wall.

"When I was sixteen, I invited her to go flying with me. I'd gotten a pilot's license and a small fighter. I started doing tricks, not paying attention to the pressure it was putting on the engines. They blew..and we crashed in a remote area. I wasn't badly hurt, but she was trapped. I watched her die slowly.." He rubbed his neck again.

"My father never forgave me. I was practically written off without being actually disowned. I couldn't take it and.." He pulled his collar down, revealing the scar. "I think you can guess the rest."

"I can't imagine how hard that would have been," she squeezed his hand tightly.

"My father put me in a hospital and didn't return. Months later the Empire attacked."

She gave him a sad look, "I wish I could have been there to help you."

He gave her a hesitant smile. "Maybe that would have helped then. Now.. I almost killed you and Hoshi. That's unforgivable." He lost the smile, staring at his hands dully. "She could control me again and I won't have that."

"I don't blame you for anything that happened and I will do everything I can to stop her from controlling you. I'd rather have you here and risk it than not have you at all."

"I can't risk it! You shouldn't have to be worried to leave me alone with Hoshi.."

"I trust you, okay? I trust you with Hoshi and myself. I _know _you're a good person."

"It doesn't matter. When she takes over, it's her will. She wants to twist Hoshi into a twin of herself…" Tears began streaking his face. "I can't fight her, Andy. And I won't let her hurt either of you." He gave her a small smile. "I just hope you can forgive me someday." His eyes started to slip closed.

Andy's eyes narrowed and she raised a hand, scanning him over.

A huge dose of sedative was beginning to slow his heart.

Andy cursed and ran to the infirmary. She came back and injected him with a counter medicine. "Kiba, you aren't going to hurt anyone." She said gently.

"I know..The dead can't do anything." The words were slow and sad. "Akemi was a better man.."

"You _are _Akemi. You're the best man I know and I love you," she said softly as her mind came up with a plan.

"I'm a pale imposter..Aiko would hate me.."

"No, love. She'd love you all the same as I do." She sighed.

He quieted, slipping into unconsciousness.

Andy stayed with him a while longer, making sure the counter medicine was working and that he would be alright when he woke up. She then wrote a note and left it beside him before going to kiss Hoshi's forehead. She headed to the bay, climbing into a fighter and flying off.

Kiba blinked his eyes, then sat up in confusion. His hand brushed the note and he read it slowly, paling rapidly. He checked on Hoshi, then ran for the bridge.

"Saka, she's lost her mind." He handed the note over and tried to calm his breathing.

The King scowled. "We have to follow her. She's going to need help."

Kiba struggled to remain composed. "She did this because of me. She's going to die just like Mom did.." He burst into tears and Saka waved Hiro forward.

The doctor gently administered a tranquilizer, supporting Kiba as it took effect. Ryusei volunteered to watch Hoshi as Hiro led Kiba off the bridge.

Andy scanned all the comm frequencies she could as well as using her own powers to scan for anything interesting. She found a few leads and started off, trying to find Zara.

A transmission pinged for attention.

She sighed, answering it. "What?"

"My dear Andaka. Are you looking for me?" Zara laughed.

"And if I am?"

"Meet me on Thao. I'll accept your surrender." The transmission ended.

Andy set course for Thao, preparing herself.

Zara was waiting, one hand idly running through a bowed man's hair when Andy landed. She smiled, pushing him away. "Andaka. How nice to see you."

"Zara."

"I misjudged you. I was sure you would run and hide, but you didn't."

"I'm not a coward," Andy growled.

"I can see that now. So, I have decided to show mercy and accept your surrender. You will stay here and be my servant. In return, I won't use your lover to slaughter your friends."

"Leave him and my daughter alone and you can do whatever you want with me," Andy looked down.

"Agreed." She motioned to the man. "Kaien, acclimate her to her new life."

He bowed, then made eye contact with Andy. They were hollow and filled with despair. He waved Andy forward, but didn't speak.

Andy followed, wondering what her new life would bring.

He took her into a room, closing the door behind them. He lifted a metal collar and handed it to her. _"Put it on."_ He pathed to her as he showed her his. There was a scar across his throat barely visible.

She did as instructed, waiting for more orders.

"_You will wear it at all times. Except for when Zara wishes your presence, you will remain here. You will be fed regularly, unless Zara punishes you. If you try to escape, you will be given to her scientists."_ He sighed silently. _"You should not have come."_

"If it keeps my family safe.."

"_Who will save us now?"_

Andy sighed and shook her head.

"_Forgive me. I was out of line."_ He began to turn away, tears welling in his eyes.

"I'm sure you'll be freed some day," she said quietly.

"_I dare not hope. My fate was sealed long ago. I bid you goodnight."_ He departed, closing the door behind him and locking it.

Andy sat down, staring blankly at the wall until she dozed off.

The door opened hours later, Zara walking in with a cold smile. She held a remote in her hand, pressing the button as she saw Andy.

Pain shot through Andy, coming from the collar.

"Strip." Zara pushed another button.

Andy felt her body was no longer in control. She moved and did as instructed. Her mind raced, confused as to what was happening.

Zara laughed as she approached. "Dear Daka. That collar allows me to control your body. It will do anything I desire. If you try to resist, pain." She squeezed one of Andy's breasts hard.

Andy's eyes widened, fear racing through her.

Zara pushed her onto the bed. "Spread your legs." She pressed the remote again.

She tried to resist, feeling the pain shooting through her before she finally obeyed.

Zara's smile got wider. She climbed onto the bed, roughly jamming several fingers into her.

Andy groaned, trying to adjust her hips.

Zara's hand began to move as her other one unzipped her robe.

Andy laid there, trying to mentally block out what was happening.

Zara removed her hand, moving back slightly and dropping the clothing to reveal a double strapon. In one motion, she forced both dildos inside and began to thrust violently. "You are mine, Daka. Forever. Forget everything you knew before, it no longer exists for you. You are here to please me until you don't anymore. That is your fate, just like Kaien. There is no escape."

Andy's eyes filled with tears at the pain she was feeling.

When it was over, Zara rose and retrieved her robe. "Sleep well, Daka." She went out, locking the door once again.

Andy laid there for hours until she finally got herself up and dressed again.

The next morning, the door was opened to admit a guard carrying a covered tray. "You are to eat, then join Zara outside to witness punishment."

Andy nodded, taking the tray and eating. She then went outside, wondering who was getting punished and why.

Zara motioned for her to sit beside her as guards led Kaien to a whipping post. He defiantly marched forward, offering no resistance as he was bound.

"What did he do?" Andy asked quietly.

"He raised a weapon to me last night." Zara's tone was icy. She gave a nod to another guard who unfurled a whip before she raised the remote to Kaien's collar and pushed a button.

He arched his back, although no sound came from his throat.

Then the guard began.

Andy cringed at the cracks of the whip, struggling to keep watching as to not upset Zara by looking away.

At the end, Kaien was unconscious, hanging limply by his wrists. His back was shredded, blood puddling at his feet.

"Leave him." Zara told the guards as a comm beeped from her robe. She stood and went inside, returning moments later laughing. She looked at Andy. "That idiot King of yours has arrived. He wants to talk."

Andy sighed and shook her head.

"He no doubt wants to rescue you." Zara looked thoughtful. "Perhaps I'll release you."

Andy raised an eyebrow, wondering what she was planning.

"Come." Zara turned and went back inside.

Andy followed quietly.

Zara opened the door to a large room. "Do I have to use the remote or will you cooperate?"

"Depends on what you want me to do," she answered.

"Strip and get on that table."

Andy shook her head quickly.

Zara scowled, then produced the remote. She pressed the button.

Andy felt pain shooting through her. She struggled not to move but finally it was too much and she obeyed.

Zara slipped restraints on her, tightly binding her in a X formation. She wheeled a machine to the end of the table and positioned it between Andy's legs. Touching a button, she smiled as Andy was filled tightly. She pressed another button, then turned away briefly. When she returned, she held what appeared to be a metal wand. She clicked it on as the machine came to life and started to move inside of Andy.

Andy struggled, trying to get away from it. Her eyes filled with tears again as she wondered what Zara had planned next.

"While I do enjoy tears, I think this should be different," Zara touched the wand to Andy's privates. It made a loud vibrating sound.

Andy groaned, begging her body to not enjoy the sensation.

"Come now, Daka. We both know how this feels." Zara upped the vibration and the machine speed. "There is pleasure to be had here. Just give in."

Andy tried to keep fighting, but her hips slowly started moving with the machine, her body betraying her.

Zara smiled, then turned the vibrating wand on full.

Andy let out a moan, beginning to tremble. Soon, she was tightening around the machine, her juices squirting out around it.

Zara laughed happily, turning both devices off. "Now, my dear Daka. When that stupid man arrives, what will you tell him?"

She tried to keep her breathing steady as she whispered, "I belong to you now."

"Very good." Zara undid the restraints. "Dress. Then we shall fully discard your old life."

Andy got off the table, quickly getting dressed and rubbing her wrists.

Zara opened the door and headed down the hall, opening a door at the end.

Andy followed quietly, praying this would be over soon. She gave herself up to save Kiba and Hoshi. She knew what she was doing. So why were they trying to rescue her?

Tsukasa was standing stiffly in the center of the room. His eyes flashed angrily as he saw Andy. "Release her. Now. Or so help me…"

Andy looked down, "I gave myself up to keep Hoshi and Kiba safe..."

"You actually believe her? Have you lost your mind?"

Zara glared at him. "You are a fool. Daka, tell him."

She refused to meet Tsukasa's gaze, "I belong to Zara now."

He exploded. "You evil bitch! Andy, come over here. We're leaving."

"I can't."

"Like hell you can't." Tsukasa stalked over and grabbed her arm.

"I'll release her if you give me things in return." Zara gave him a smile. "Give me the child and your crown. Do that and she's free to go."

"You can't!" Andy said quickly.

Tsukasa smirked. "I intend to give you something alright. But it isn't that." He pulled a gun and fired at Zara.

She dodged and grabbed Tsukasa by the throat, her eyes glowing.

There was slow, jerky movement out of the corner of Andy's eye.

Andy wanted to push Zara away from Tsukasa but she didn't want to do anything to risk Hoshi and Kiba's safety.

Kaien appeared, swaying with a sword clutched in his shaking hands. With one motion, he stabbed Zara in the back before crumpling to the ground.

Zara screamed, releasing Tsukasa as she tried to remove the sword.

Andy watched in shock, going to Tsukasa's side to check on him.

He was barely breathing, his eyes unfocused as he weakly gasped for air.

Andy pushed energy into him to try to help.

Zara had sunk to the floor, her hand scrabbling in her robe. A remote appeared and she pushed a button as she snarled.

Kaien writhed silently on the floor, his eyes desperately meeting Andy's before closing. His body stilled and Zara laughed maniacally.

Andy let out a small sob, continuing to focus her energy on Tsukasa.

A moment later, Zara lay still as well, blood spreading around her.

Tsukasa's eyes slowly focused on Andy. "Is she?"

Andy focused on Zara's energy and drained the rest of it before nodding slowly.

"What about him? Who was he?" Tsukasa slowly sat up, staring at Kaien's body.

"Kaien. One of her servants," Andy said quietly. She felt numb, not fully grasping that Zara was gone.

Tsukasa slowly crawled over and touched Kaien's neck. "Andy, he's alive! It's faint, but he has a pulse. Help me get this collar off."

Andy went to him, working on removing the collar.

"I don't see an injury. Where's the blood coming from?" Tsukasa asked worriedly.

Andy scanned him over before pushing energy into healing him. "He was whipped."

"Will he survive? Should we bring him to the Heiwa?"

Andy nodded, "Let me heal him a bit longer then he can be moved."

Tsukasa nodded, keying his comm. "Yoshi, alert Hiro to be ready for two patients. We'll be there shortly." He keyed it off after getting acknowledged, then sat and watched Andy.

Kaien's eyes fluttered open. _"Are we free?"_

"She's gone."

He smiled faintly. _"You can go home. I'm glad."_

"We're taking you to our infirmary," she continued to heal him. "Do you have anywhere else to go after that? If not, you can stay on our ship."

"_I have nowhere and no one. She destroyed my planet long ago. Why would you want me?"_

"We just like helping people," she said softly. "You can join us if you'd like."

"_May I ask for a favor?"_

"Sure."

"_Your gift..can it restore my voice?"_

"How long has it been gone?"

"_Five years.."_ He shook his head. _"I'm sorry. Don't pay attention to me."_

"I might be able to. I can get better scans on the ship and talk to our doctor to get ideas on how to fix it. I can't promise anything, but I'll try."

His eyes shone with hope. _"I am grateful. May I sleep?"_

"Rest and relax. We'll get you to the ship and we can talk more later, okay?" She looked over at Tsukasa.

"I'll carry him." Tsukasa began to pick Kaien up, breathing hard as he shakily stood.

Andy went to his side to help if he needed it.

They made their way outside where Yoshi was waiting in a transport. Between the three of them, Kaien was quickly settled and they were on their way.

When they arrived, Hiro was waiting. "Thought you said two patients, not three."

"I did. Him and her." Tsukasa answered, massaging his throat.

"I'm fine. Just take care of Tsukasa and Kaien," Andy answered quietly.

Tsukasa tried to glare at her, but his pallor wasn't convincingly intimidating. "I'm alright."

"You were being choked. You aren't alright," Andy argued.

Hiro moved to Tsukasa's side after sending his nurses ahead with Kaien. He stuck the captain with a needle, smiling at the disgruntled look he was given. "You need to rest. Doctor's orders."

Tsukasa tried to argue, but his eyes slid closed and Hiro laid him on a gurney.

"Are you sure you're alright?" He looked at her intently.

She nodded slowly.

He sighed, but nodded. "The Furies are taking care of Hoshi. I've got Kiba sedated in your quarters." He pushed the gurney down the hall, leaving her alone.

She headed to their room, sitting on the bed beside Kiba and staring at the wall while waiting for him to wake.

She didn't have to wait long.

His eyes flew open as he cried her name, his body trembling.

"Shh, it's alright. Zara's gone, she can't hurt you anymore."

"I wish this was real.." Kiba's voice was full of despair. "I wish you were here. I want to stay like this.." His eyes were unfocused, his words slurred. "I don't want to ever wake up.."

"This is real, Kiba," she said softly, putting her hand on him.

He blinked, staring at her. He gave a strangled sob, then wrapped his arms around her tight.

Andy hugged him back tightly.

After a minute, he drew back. His fingers brushed the collar in confusion. "What is this?"

Andy's eyes widened and she shook her head, hands moving to quickly remove it.

"What did she do to you?"

Andy looked down, shaking her head again.

He lifted her chin. "I'm sorry..it's my fault."

"No it's not," she said quickly. "_I _gave myself up. And it wasn't just for you, it was for Hoshi too."

"I should have been stronger and killed her myself." He gritted his teeth.

Her eyes filled with tears, "Stop blaming yourself or thinking you could do more. _It's not your fault_."

"I can't help it. I swore to protect both of you and I've done nothing but fail." He hung his head.

"Kiba, stop it. It's not your fault, it's Zara's. But she's gone now. She can't hurt any of us again." She lifted his chin and gave him a gentle kiss. "Please cheer up, I hate seeing you like this."

He tried to smile, kissing her hungrily.

Her comm chimed.

She took a deep breath and answered, "Hello?"

Hiro sounded as if he was out of breath. "I could use your help. Kaien is trying to leave the ship."

Kiba gave her a puzzled look. "Who is Kaien?"

Andy sighed, "Be right there." She looked at Kiba, "One of Zara's servants. She destroyed his planet." She pushed herself up and headed out of the room, going to find them. She finally spotted Kaien, "Hey, what's wrong? Where are you going?"

His eyes were dull and he walked robotically towards her. _"Must return..my mistress.."_

Andy sighed, "Kaien, Zara's gone. You're free."

Hiro ran to her side. "He woke up and immediately went nuts. He hit several nurses, then forced his way past me. He hasn't said a word." The doctor rubbed his chest with a wince. "He's strong."

Andy focused a moment, pushing energy into Kaien and forcing calming feelings into it.

He froze, blinking his eyes before looking at her. _"What am I doing here?"_

"You're on my ship. You're safe now."

"_You really saved me..I did not believe I would wake."_ He was wide eyed as he surveyed the hallway.

"I'm a healer, of course I'd help save you," she said softly.

"_I was Zara's. I expected you to leave me.."_ He finally dropped his eyes.

"She was controlling you. You needed help just like I did," Andy spoke gently. "Now why don't we get you back to the infirmary and make sure everything is alright?"

"I was about to scan him for hidden problems." Hiro whispered in her ear. "Is he deaf? Or just mute?"

"He's mute but can talk telepathically. I wanted to do scans to see if there's any way we can fix him."

"The scar on his throat? So it's not natural?" Hiro gently took one of Kaien's arms.

She shook her head and started leading Kaien back to the infirmary.

He meekly walked between them, his eyes on the floor. When they arrived, he laid down without protest and allowed Hiro to scan him over.

"Any way I could talk you into reviving her so I can kill her?" Hiro snarled as he looked at the scans. His hands were clenched so tight they were shaking.

Andy sighed, taking a look at the scans. She tried to figure out if she could help rebuild the damaged area, but couldn't be sure without trying it.

Kaien closed his eyes, his voice soft in her mind. _"She was a harsh mistress. I was punished often in the beginning. She finally had enough of my retorts and insults and used her power to take my voice. I resigned myself to its loss. You are under no obligation to help me in any way, nor give me sanctuary. You may leave me wherever you wish."_

"You're staying here, unless you really don't want to. I'm not forcing you to stay," she answered before moving to him. "I'm not sure this will work, but I'm going to try to help you." She raised a hand above his throat, focusing for a long time. She worked on trying to rebuild everything by creating new cells. It took a lot of energy and focus but she continued, trying to help him. Eventually she dropped her hand, "It's been so long you might have trouble talking anyway, but I think I may have fixed it. You can try talking when you're ready."

His eyes flew open in disbelief. He slowly sat up, then opened his mouth. The voice that emerged was deep and musical. "Why? I do not deserve aid." He stared at her in shock.

"You don't deserve what she did to you," Andy answered.

His eyes filled with tears. "I helped her conquer my planet. I am no better than her."

"You helped take her down so I believe in the good in you. You're a good person, even if you've done bad things. And I'm sure most of any bad you've done was while she was controlling you."

He looked at her. "You do not think me evil?"

"Not at all," she shook her head.

He dropped his eyes, looking lost.

Hiro drew her aside, his jaw tensed. "The scans show multiple old fractures and scar tissue. He's also been assaulted more than once and has internal damage. What do you want to do?"

Andy sighed, "I'll try to help fix what I can. Then we just have to hope for the best."

Hiro nodded, then turned to Kaien with a gentle smile. "Kaien, I'm going to sedate you now. You need to rest. When you wake, Andy will help you get used to the ship. Is that alright with you?"

Kaien nodded slowly, laying down silently.

Hiro administered the injection, waiting until his eyes closed to return to Andy's side. "The majority of the injuries predate the throat injury by at least four years."

Andy took a deep breath, "Being there just a couple days was bad. I can't imagine all he went through.."

The doctor nodded sadly before moving away.

Andy stood above Kaien, focusing on trying to fix and heal anything she could. After a long while, she sat down in the chair beside him, feeling exhausted.

The door opened, Kiba entering. He headed for where she sat, giving her a soft kiss. "You okay?"

She nodded slowly, "Just tired after everything."

He gave her a gentle hug, raising his eyes to Kaien. Then he froze, inhaling sharply.

"What's wrong?"

He stared in shock, his voice low. "That's Kaien? He was with Zara?"

"Yeah, why?"

"I went to school with him..he's royalty. I thought he was dead."

Andy sighed, "He's been with Zara a long time now. I don't know much else about him though."

"Prince Kaien Shijima from Kolion. World class prankster, scholar and a guy so nice your teeth ache. We were best friends once, along with my brothers and Tak."

Andy nodded slowly, "I'm glad he'll know someone here."

Kiba gently lifted her to her feet, then picked her up bridal style. "You need to rest." He took her to their room, laying her down on the bed and crawling in beside her. "Turn your head off for awhile, okay?"

She slowly closed her eyes, soon falling fast asleep. After a few hours, she began having nightmares. She saw Zara above her, replaying the events of her time there. On the outside, tears streaked her face and she let out a small whimper.

Kiba sat up and wrapped his arms around her. "You're safe, Andy. Open your eyes. Everything's alright."

Andy's eyes shot open quickly before finally focusing on him. She sighed, "Sorry."

"No apologizing. I expect you to have nightmares after being held by that bitch. Gods know I do. But I'll always wake you, alright?" He kissed her softly. "Want to see Hoshi?"

She nodded slowly before hanging her head, "I feel bad having nightmares though. I was only there a couple days. It's nothing compared to what you guys have gone through."

"Length of time has nothing to do with it. Trauma is trauma and doesn't care. I have a feeling your time with Zara was worse than mine, no matter the short duration. Now, let's get our baby back before the Furies decide to keep her. We don't need her flying before she can walk."

Andy gave a small chuckle before climbing off the bed.

Kiba followed, heading for the Furie's communal room. He knocked on the door.

Ryon opened it, Hoshi sleeping in one arm. "Yes?" His eyes twinkled and he was fighting a smile.

"Thank you for taking care of her, but I think we're okay enough now to have her back," Andy gave him a small smile.

"You sure? I've grown sort of attached. Whatever will I do with my time now?" The grin broke free as he looked down at the baby fondly.

"You can feel free to babysit her," Andy chuckled.

He laughed softly and handed Hoshi over. There was something hard wrapped up in the blanket.

Andy raised an eyebrow at Ryon.

"Just a little birthday gift from us."

Andy chuckled and shook her head.

Kiba rolled his eyes, then smirked. "Go find a new hobby."

Ryon stuck his tongue out, then laughed as he shut the door.

Andy held Hoshi tight, smiling as she started down the hall.

Kiba quickly caught up, wrapping an arm around her waist as he sighed in contentment.


	8. Chapter 8

Kiba waited until Andy had emerged from the shower, then began kissing her. One hand edged under the towel and began to fondle her breast. "I want you."

Andy nodded slowly, trying to keep her breathing steady.

He tugged at the towel as he backed her toward the bed, "Let me see you." He kissed her deeply as she tumbled backwards onto the mattress.

Her breathing was quickening and he could see a flash of uncertainty in her eyes.

He drew back quickly, his eyes narrowing. His mind raced through possible scenarios before he went white and scrambled to his feet. "Oh gods.. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have. I'm sorry." He backed away, his eyes pleading. "Forgive me.."

Andy took a deep breath as she sat up, "Kiba, it's alright. You didn't know what happened, so I'm not upset with you."

"I should have considered this. Instead, I made things worse." He was shaking as he turned away from her. "I'm so sorry. I'll leave so you can dress."

"Wait," she said softly. She got up and moved to him, gently putting a hand on his arm, "I _do _want you. I just.. it's confusing.." she was quiet, barely above a whisper. "I'm sorry."

He shook his head, then gave her a gentle kiss. "It's not your fault." He slipped out the door, leaving her alone.

Andy got dressed quickly and went to the door, wanting to search for him. Her mind raced through possibilities and she finally stopped moving when the thought crossed her mind. What if he didn't want her anymore? She'd been tainted by Zara. Why would he want her after that?

She stood there frozen for a few minutes before exiting, slowly checking the rooms for Kiba.

Kiba sat in a storage room, staring at the wall. His mind was blank aside from the thought he'd failed. Andy had obviously gone through hell and what did he do? Tried to stir it all back up. He hung his head, then jerked as an image flashed through his head. He forced his eyes closed, but the images began flashing defiantly at a rapid pace. He grabbed his head, trying to force back the scream building in his throat. He shook his head, not wanting to believe.

After not finding Kiba, Andy scanned the energy signatures on the ship. She slowly opened the door to the storage room, growing concerned when she saw him. Tears filled her eyes and she spoke quickly, trying not to sob, "I'm sorry. I should have told you what happened sooner. I understand why you don't want me anymore, I'm tainted. She was right, I can't ever get away from her, even if she's gone.." she took a deep breath, "You don't have to worry about me anymore. I'll find somewhere else to go so I'm not here bothering you or reminding you of her."

He looked at her in terror. "Don't leave me..._please_.. Unless you hate me now? I remember now..she did things. Let others do things...I'm the one tainted..I don't deserve you." He jumped to his feet and tried to run past her, tremors shaking his body visibly.

Andy stood in his way, staring at him with an unreadable expression, "You.. you don't hate me?"

He looked at her in despair. "How could I _ever_ hate you? You saved my body and soul.. You trusted me when all the evidence pointed to me abandoning you. How can you even ask that?" Tears poured down his cheeks as he clenched his fists. "I've done nothing but cause you heartache. I need to disappear. I'm not fit to be your consort or Hoshi's father. I..I'm no longer a man.. Zara took that from me." He tried to push past her.

"Kiba, the only heartache you bring me is when you try to leave me. I love you, no matter what Zara or anyone else has done to you. I love _you. _Whether you believe you're a man or not, I think you're one of the strongest men I've ever known." She took another deep breath, wiping at her eyes, "But if you _want_ to disappear, just know you'll be ripping my heart out because it goes wherever you do."

"I.. I don't want to be alone. But I can't bear the idea of you being with me out of pity. I feel dirty, like I'll never be clean again. I tried to deny the memories, push them away. But I can't. I can feel her. Feel the ones she gave me to. I can hear their laughter still." He sank to his knees, his voice anguished.

"I'm sorry," she said softly as she knelt and wrapped her arms around him. "I wouldn't be with you out of pity. I'd be with you because I love you. We both feel dirty and tainted, maybe somehow, together, we can get past it."

He leaned into her touch, silent sobs shaking his body. His hands clutched at her shirt in desperation. "Please don't leave me.. Make me yours instead of hers.." His lips bruised hers as he kissed her frantically.

She kissed him back hard, clutching him tightly.

He tentatively raised a hand to her chest, his eyes questioning.

She nodded, "It's alright."

He cupped her breast, his touch gentle as he kissed her softly.

A while later, they exited the storage room, straightening out their clothes.

"We should check on Hoshi," Andy said softly.

"Yeah. I love you."

"I love you too." She gave him a smile, "So.. we never really discussed it. When do you want to get married?"

"As soon as possible." Kiba returned the smile as Tet ran up to them. "Andy, it's your father.."

Kiba pushed her forward. "Go help him. We'll be fine."

Andy shot Tet a worried look, "What's happened?"

"The doctor commed us. Says his sickness is back and it's bad."

Andy nodded, "I'm going to try to help him.. I'll be back as soon as I can. Make sure Hoshi is alright?"

Kiba chuckled and kissed her. "She'll be fine."

Andy gave him a small smile before rushing to the fighter bay and flying off.

She arrived at the palace her father was staying at, climbing out and heading inside. She looked around for anyone who could point her in the right direction. Eventually a servant helped her and she went to the room he was in. She entered slowly, looking him over worriedly.

He lay unconscious, only moving to cry out in pain. He was feverish and pale.

The doctor approached. "Princess. He's been sick for several days and this morning was found like this. I fear you will be Empress soon as the medicine no longer works."

"I'm a healer. I'll see what I can do to help him," Andy answered, moving to her father's side. She held her hands out above him, covering him in a blue light. She worked on trying to kill the infected cells and prevent new ones from being formed. After a few hours of standing there working, she swayed slightly, the heavy focus becoming exhausting. She continued on though, desperate to save her father's life.

Her comm began to beep insistently at her belt.

"What's up?" She finally answered.

Ryon's voice was panicked. "Are you safe?" Hoshi could be heard crying in the background.

"Yeah, what's wrong?"

"The Heiwa was boarded, not sure by who. Kiba pushed me and Hoshi into an escape pod and launched it." Hoshi finally stopped crying.

Andy froze, her mind racing, "I'll be there as soon as I can. Keep Hoshi safe and I'll let you know when you can go back to the Heiwa."

"I need to land. The engine is sputtering. I think it was hit when we escaped and the ship fired on us."

"Okay. Let me know where you land then."

"Ryon out."

The terminal in the room suddenly crackled to life with live video. A burly man stood in front of it.

"To the Empire: Prince Alaric is not our true leader. Neither is his bastard daughter. Our true leader is dead and we must crown a new one. I have taken the Princess' ship. The rebels are dead. All except these two."

Andy shook with anger. She checked over her father again to see if he was improving.

He moved to reveal Tsukasa and Kiba, bound to stakes in the cargo hold. "The rebel king and his brother. With their deaths, the rebellion is finished." He nodded to two men who wrapped garrotes around their necks and pulled.

Moments later, Tsukasa and Kiba's heads hung limp and the man laughed. Then the feed ended.

Her father's eyes fluttered open. "Daka..what's wrong?"

"The Heiwa has been boarded and they are claiming they don't support us as leaders. I may be unable to do anything for my crew.."

"Go save them. I feel much better now." He gave her a small smile.

She suddenly heard Ryon's voice behind her. "Andy.."

She turned quickly, "Ryon?"

"I..followed your signal." He held Hoshi tight as he swayed. "I kept her safe.."

Andy quickly took Hoshi before putting her other hand on Ryon and scanning him over.

There was a laser burn that had entered his back from behind, continuing through to come out his side. Blood was sluggishly exiting under a makeshift bandage. His eyes were barely open and she could feel him shaking. "The others?"

She sighed, "I'll take care of everything, don't worry." She handed Hoshi to the doctor before pushing Ryon into a chair. She then worked on healing him up. "Just stay here. I'm sure they can get you a room to lay down in. I'm going to try to take care of everything."

She went back to her father, "I'll be back as soon as I can."

"Andy, you can't! They'll kill you!" Ryon tried to stand. "At least let me come with you…"

"I have a plan," Andy said softly. "Just rest."

"They're all dead, aren't they?" Ryon sagged in the chair. "Just get the bastards, okay?" He finally passed out, the doctor hovering beside him.

Andy took a deep breath before heading to the fighter. She locked onto the Heiwa's location and started her way there. She got closer, hoping to be able to put her plan into motion before being shot at. She tried to scan the energy signatures on the ship as her eyes glowed a soft blue. She couldn't read the whole thing though, so she flew closer. She didn't sense any signatures which surprised her, expecting a few of the attackers to be on board.

She landed in the fighter bay and climbed out, starting her search for the crew.

She found the Furies first, fallen in a pile in the hall to the kitchen. The blood was already dry around them. She worked on moving them to the infirmary before searching for more.

Itsuki was in a puddle of blood near the bridge, cold and still.

The bridge was a massacre, still bodies everywhere. Blood streaked the floors and terminals.

She began moving everyone to the infirmary then worked on cleaning everyone up. She gently cleaned blood off of them as she closed their wounds. When she got done, hours later, she stood in the middle of the infirmary. She closed her eyes, focusing on finding energy sources nearby. She found they were surrounded by stars so she began pulling the energy from them and pushing it into the group. She drained star after star of energy, blacking them out as she continued to work. She opened her eyes and watched the group, praying she pulled enough energy to bring them back.

Daiki stirred, his eyes weakly opening. "They..took Saka and Kiba..Help them.."

"Of course I will," Andy said gently. "Just relax."

She searched the ship, finally coming to the cargo hold. She entered, looking around until she finally spotted Tsukasa and Kiba.

They were crumpled on the floor in front of the stakes, the ropes having been undone after the feed had ended. Tsukasa was on his back, Kiba facedown.

Andy moved to them, straightening them out and checking them over. She focused on gathering energy and began pushing it into them rapidly.

Tsukasa gasped, his eyes flying open. When they had focused, he stared at Andy. "How are you here?"

"I came to help you guys," Andy shrugged.

"Kiba? The crew?" He shakily pushed himself up, then froze as he saw his brother unmoving. He turned worried eyes to her.

Andy closed her eyes a moment, gathering in more energy from the stars and went back to pushing it into Kiba.

His chest finally rose shakily, the motion causing his hair to fall into his face.

Andy brushed the hair away, checking his pulse and making sure it was steady before looking back at Tsukasa, "They'll be alright."

"Those bastards..they want to stage a coup." Tsukasa rubbed his throat gently.

"Hoshi? Where is she?" Kiba grabbed her sleeve in panic.

"She's with Ryon and my father. I'll be heading back there soon, I just came to help you guys out."

He released her sleeve as he lost consciousness again.

Tsukasa watched her. "You look like you're going to join Kiba. You should rest a bit."

She nodded slowly, moving to sit. "The rest of the crew is in the infirmary. I cleaned them all up, but the ship is coated in blood, especially the bridge so we'll need to work on that soon. My father is doing better now though, so that's a good thing.." she rambled tiredly.

Tsukasa gave her an amused look. "We'll take care of it. And I'm glad your dad is better. I hope he stays that way."

She nodded again before closing her eyes. A few minutes later, she pushed herself up and lifted Kiba, carrying him to the infirmary before going back to help Tsukasa.

He was staring at his comm dully.

"You okay?"

"Your dad's doctor just commed me…"

"What's wrong?"

"Ryon..the doctor says he was fine, then his heart just stopped.."

Andy's eyes narrowed, "I know I healed him.. There has to be something else going on here." She held her hand out to Tsukasa to help him up, "I'm going to go check on everything. You should lay down in the infirmary and get some rest."

He nodded slowly as he stood. "Did he know about the crew? Maybe the shock killed him?"

"I think he suspected. I was going to assure him I'd try my best, but he passed out before I could."

"Go. We'll be okay." He left the hold quietly.

Andy sighed, heading back to the bay and climbing back in her fighter. She took off toward the palace, praying she could revive Ryon as well.

The doctor met her when she landed, something in his hand. "I tried to revive him unsuccessfully. This appeared around his neck." He handed her Ryon's stone, now cold and dark.

Andy frowned, going to Ryon. She placed the stone on him, "Ryon, I saved the crew. Everyone will be missing you if you don't come back to us." She began pushing energy into Ryon's body as well as the stone, hoping it would help. She prayed for any sign of life as she took energy from the planet they were on.

The stone began to glow, then Ryon took a breath. His eyes remained closed, but his skin grew warm under her hand.

"Stay with us, Ryon," she said softly, moving to sit in a chair as dizziness rushed over her.

"You really saved them?" The words were faint, his eyes opening slowly.

"Yeah," she answered.

He gave her a small smile before closing his eyes.

A maid came in, Hoshi in her arms. "Princess?"

Andy smiled softly and took Hoshi, "How has she been?"

"Quiet, Princess. She was just fed and changed."

"Thank you." Andy held Hoshi close, closing her eyes and humming softly.

Her comm chimed.

"What's up?"

"We're in orbit, whenever you three decide to return." Tsukasa was quiet.

"Alright. I'll let you know. I'll wait until Ryon wakes again."

"Understood. Kadoya out."

Andy relaxed again, going back to humming. After a few minutes she decided to check on her father. She carried Hoshi out and over to her father's room.

He was sitting up, reading through papers. When he saw her, he smiled. "Everyone alright?"

"They will be," she gave him a small smile. "Have you met Hoshi yet?"

His smile got brighter. "No. She's beautiful."

Andy grinned, "She is." She brought the sleeping baby closer to him.

He gazed down at her, his smile turning sad. "I missed this with you.."

"I know you'd have been there if you could," she smiled softly.

"I left to protect you. Your mother had just become pregnant. I feared my father's wrath."

"I always thought Avery and I had the same dad until I met you. I guess his dad really did die, huh? Did you like Ave?"

"I've never met him, Daka. I haven't seen your mother since the day I left. We agreed to never meet until I took the throne."

Andy nodded in understanding. "How did you know who I was when you saw me?"

"You look just like your mother." He gave her a soft smile.

She smiled and looked back down at Hoshi. "I hope she gets to grow up in a peaceful universe. So far it's been nothing but trouble though."

He sighed. "I wanted you to grow up innocent and in peace. I wanted you to never hear of the Empire until I took control. I'm sorry."

"It's alright. I lived most of my life having no idea it existed. I guess that's one of the positives of being a peaceful neutral planet."

"Your young man, was he the same?" He watched Hoshi as he waited for an answer.

She shook her head, "He's one of the Princes from Chandra."

Alaric's face fell. "My father took over Chandra. The royal family were all killed.."

"Not Kiba and his brothers."

Alaric sighed again. "Does he hold anger towards me for not acting sooner?"

"I don't think so," Andy gave him a small smile.

"I am glad. What happened with the ones who captured the Heiwa? Are they no longer a threat?"

"They weren't there when I arrived. I haven't found them yet, but we will start to look for them soon. I'm sure they'll be upset to find the Heiwa still running."

He laughed softly.

"Andy?" Ryon leaned in the doorway sleepily.

"Hey. You feeling better?"

"Mostly. Is everything alright?"

"We still haven't found the attackers, but everyone is alive and the ship is here waiting for us."

He nodded and gave her a contrite look. "I need to apologize for earlier…"

Andy shook her head, "It's alright." She gave him a smile. "And thank you for protecting Hoshi."

"Of course. I would die before allowing her to be harmed." He smiled at the sleeping baby.

"I'm sure you want to get back. Be safe." Alaric kissed Hoshi's cheek, then Andy's.

"I'll keep you updated on everything," she smiled. "And let me know if you start feeling bad again. I can come help some more."

He smiled and nodded before returning to his screen.

Andy led Ryon to the fighter bay and they flew back to the Heiwa. Andy headed to the bridge to see what was happening.

Tsukasa was staring at the stars, his eyes distant. The rest of the crew gave her bright smiles as they went about their duties.

"Everything okay?" Andy approached Tsukasa.

"Someday, scientists will see those burnt out stars and try to figure out what kind of catastrophe occurred…"

Andy sighed, "They were the only sources of energy around that I could use.."

He turned to her. "I understand saving Kiba. But you saved all of us..we're not that important, are we?"

"You guys are my friends. And you've become like a family to me. Of course you're that important."

"I feel like we cause more trouble for you." He sighed.

"You don't, okay?" She gave him a soft smile. "Now any idea where the attackers went?"

"Not a clue. That's what worries me. They were discussing a coup, but didn't attack your father. They didn't keep the Heiwa for themselves either, even though they could have easily dumped our bodies into space. I don't know what they are thinking."

"I figured if they want the Empire they'd come after my father and I. I don't know if we should call them out on it or wait to see what they do next.."

"Up to you. I just fly the ship." He gave her a cheeky grin.

She chuckled, "Let's wait a couple days and see if anything happens, then we'll call them out."

"Alright. How's your father doing?"

"He's doing better," Andy nodded before yawning. "I feel like I could sleep for a week."

"You look like it too." He chuckled. "Go get some rest."

She nodded again, heading to her and Kiba's room.

Kiba was curled around her pillow, his face tear streaked as his eyes moved under his lids.

She moved to him, gently shaking him, "Kiba? It's just a nightmare. Everything is alright."

His eyes opened slowly. When they finally focused, he grabbed her in a tight hug. "I'm sorry…"

"For what?" she asked quietly as she held him.

"I left you alone..I died..and you could do nothing but watch." He buried his face in her shirt.

"It's alright. I'm just glad you're safe now."

"I keep feeling it around my throat.." He took a shuddering breath. "All I could do was hope you and Hoshi were safe."

"Everything is fine, we're all safe for now." She kissed his forehead.

"Sleep with me?"

She nodded, moving to lay down and cuddled up against him.

He sighed, his eyes closing as exhaustion dragged him under.

Andy was soon fast asleep as well, too tired to even dream.


End file.
